PEYOTE 


AN  ABRIDGED  COMPILATION 

FROM  THE  FILES  OF  THE 

BUREAU  OF  INDIAN  AFFAIRS 


Prepared  by  Dr.  ROBERT  E.  L.  NEWBERNE 

Chief  Medical  Supervisor 

Under  the  direction  of  CHAS.  H.  BURKE 

Commissioner 


WASHINGTON 
GOVERNMENT  PRINTING  OFFICE 

1922 


In  compliance  with  current  copyright 
law,  U.  C.  Library  Bindery  produced 

this  replacement  volume  on  paper 

that  meets  ANSI  Standard  Z39.48-1984 

to  replace  the  deteriorated, 

damaged,  or  lost  original. 

2002 


CONTENTS. 


Page. 

Introduction v 

The  Indian's  craving  for  stimulants 1 

The  peyote  cactus 2 

Derivation  of  name „. 2 

Indian  names  for  peyote 3 

Botanical  name  of  peyote 3 

Botanical  variations 4 

Geographical  distribution 4 

The  sacred  mushroom  of  the  Aztecs 4 

Peyote  in  commerce 5 

Early  missionary  reports  concerning  sacred  plants 7 

Worship  of  the  cactus 8 

The  attitude  of  the  missionaries 8 

Ceremonial  use  of  peyote  by  the  Indians 9 

The  old-time  peyote  meeting 9 

An  official  description  of  a  modern  peyote  meeting 11 

The  peyote  religion 11 

The  growth  of  the  peyote  cult 12 

Religio-therapeutic  use  of  peyote 13 

The  extension  of  the  habit 14 

Harmful  effects  of  peyote 14 

Is  peyote  an  intoxicant? 16 

Peyote  as  an  intoxicant  before  the  courts 18 

How  peyote  is  taken  and  its  immediate  effects 19 

Physiological  action . 20 

Therapeutic  uses 23 

Peyote  and  the  food  and  drugs  act 23 

Opposition  to  legislation 25 

Testimony  of  Dr.  Harey  W.  Wiley 25 

The  peyote  questionnaire 26 

Summary  of  the  returns 28 

Table  I — Use  of  peyote  by  jurisdictions 33 

Table  II— Use  of  peyote  by  States 35 


ILLUSTRATIONS. 

i.  Lophophora  William  sit,  cemmon  type. 

1.  Lophophora  williamsU,  common  type 2 

2.  Another  type  of  Lophophora  icrilliamsii 4 

3.  The  Aztec  narcotic  cactus  (buttons) 6 

4.  The  devil's  root 8 

5.  The  southern  type  of  Lophophora  williamsU 10 

6.  Two  forms  of  Lophophora  williamsU  from  same  hill 12 

in 


us 


INTRODUCTION. 

This  pamphlet,  which  is  an  abridgement  of  a  compilation  made 
some  time  ago  of  selected  matter  from  the  peyote  files  of  the  Bureau 
of  Indian  Affairs,  by  Dr.  Robert  E.  L.  Newberne,  is  published  as  a 
convenient  source  of  information  for  the  employees  of  the  Indian 
Service  and  for  supplying  those  who  are  interested  in  securing  regu 
lative  legislation  against  the  sale,  shipment,  and  use  of  peyote  with 
the  kind  of  data  most  frequently  requested. 

JPeyote  is  said  to  be  a  narcotic  drug,  yet  it  is  not  covered  by  the 
provisions  of  the  Harrison  Narcotic  Act;  it  is  said  to  be  an  intoxi 
cant,  but  its  use  is  not  interdicted  by  the  national  prohibition  amend 
ment  to  the  Constitution  of  the  United  States. 

.Regardless  of  whatever  else  peyote  may  be,  the  weight  of  evi 
dence  pronounces  it  harmful  to  those  who  use  it  habitually,  particu 
larly  to  growing  children;  therefor  I  warn  the  Indian  people 
against  the  drug  and  say  to  them,'  in  the  language  of  Herbert 
Spencer : 

For  complete  livinjr  it  is1  necessary  that  there  shall  he  escaped  the  inca 
pacities  and  slow  annihilations  which  unwise  hahits  entail. 

* 

I  would  also  remind  them,  in  the  words  of  Clauston,  that — 

To  crave  is  eiisy.  to  control  is  difhVult  :  therefore  the  wiser  course  is  to 
avoid  those  tbinjrs  which  tend  to  create  u  craving. 

CHAS.  H.  BURKE, 

Commissioner. 


PEYOTE. 

THE  INDIAN'S  CRAVING  FOR  STIMULANTS. 

AVhcther  or  not  American  Indians  crave  intoxicants  more  than 
other  pcnplo,  an  impression  to  that  effect  is  widespread,  and  certain 
writers  have  sought  to  explain  and  condone  the  alleged  tendency  by 
saving  that  the  actuating  desire  has  its  origin  in  physiological  and 
psychological  deficiencies,  caused  by  the  lack  of  proper  food  through 
many  generations  and  the  present  want  of  suitable  mental  stimulus. 

Jn  his  native  life  there  was  much  more  to  interest  the  Indian  than 
there  is  now.  His  very  existence  was  one  of  activity  and  industry. 
Every  article  used  by  him  was  of  native  manufacture.  His  food, 
his  shelter,  his  raiment,  his  decorative  art.  his  amusements — all  de 
pended  upon  his  individual  initiative  and  effort.  But  the  tide  of 
changing  conditions  \vhich  is  bearing  him  onto  the  shores  of  a  new 
world  has  swept  awa}^  the  stimulus  that  kept  him  busy  and  interested, 
and  he  is  now  watchfully  waiting  for  his  star  of  destiny  to  lead  him 
to  his  place  in  the  sun.  His  work,  which  was  once  done  in  the  spirit 
of  aggressive  genius,  is  now  resolved  into  commonplace  toil,  for,  to 
him,  what  is  the  use  of  the  struggle?  They  say  that  he  has  contended 
against  fate  and  failed.  Why  not  forget,  and  if  there  is  anything 
that  will  bring  about  forgetfulness  and  make  the  heart  glad,  if  but 
for  a  moment,  why  not  take  it? 

If  the  use  of  intoxicating  plants  and  of  fermented  drinks  had 
been  unknown  to  the  ancient  Indian,  this  theory  would  possess 
greater  validity  than  can  rightfully  be  accorded  to  it,  but  if  the  sub 
ject  is  studied  by  tracing  the  facts  back  through  the  ages,  the  evi 
dence  of  a  reversion  to  ancestral  customs  is  suggested,  if  not  made 
manifest. 

The  Indian  has  never  been  entirety  satisfied  with  alcohol;  its 
effects  and  its  violent  hasty  reaction  have  not  harmonized  with  his 
Elysian  dreams,  and  such  violent  reactions  have  destroyed  his  faith 
in  its  power  to  transport  him  in  celestial  visions  to  the  happy  hunt 
ing  grounds  of  his  fathers;  but  he  did  not  forego  the  stimulating 
effect  of  alcoholic  drinks  because  of  the  disagreeable  after  effects,  or 
because  he  was  not  getting  what  he  longed  for;  it  was  the  best  he 
could  do ;  and  if  he  was  ordained  to  live  the  life  of  the  white  man  he 
would  not  repudiate  his  demons.  But  something  in  his  nature — it 
might  have  been  the  coming  into  consciousness  of  knowledge  long 
hidden  in  his  subconscious  mind,  or  it  might  have  been  the  prompting 

1 


of  cell  cravings — told  him  that  there  was  a  better  intoxicant  than 
whisky,  an  herb  known  to  his  ancestors,  and  he  sought  that  herb  and 
found  it  in  peyote,  and  he  believes  that  his  people  now  have  an  in 
toxicant  that  satisfies  and  yet  leaves  consciousness  to  witness  the 
strange  orgies  that  are  taking  place  in  the  underworld  of  their  men 
tality. 

THE  PEYOTE  CACTUS. 

The  peyote  cactus  (Lophophora  wiUiamsii)  is  a  succulent,  spine 
less  cactus,  usually  shaped  like  a  turnip  or  a  carrot,  with  a  depressed 
globose  or  hemispherical  head  and  having  low,  inconspicuous  tu 
bercles  and  a  tapering  tap  root.  The  tubercles  occur  normally  in 
longitudinal  ribs,  but  in  some  forms  of  the  plant  they  are  arranged 
spirally  or  irregularly.  In  the  center  of  each  tubercle  there  is  a 
flower-bearing  areole  with  a  dense  tuft  of  erect  hairs,  from  the  midst 
of  which  the  flower  issues.  When  mature  the  tuft  of  hairs  persists 
as  a  pulvillus  in  the  form  of  a  pencil  or  brush  of  hairs.  The  plants 
grow  either  solitary  or.  more  frequently,  in  clusters  of  several  from 
a  common  base. 

The  peyote  of  commerce  is  the  dried  flowering  tops  of  the  peyote 
cactus — a  brown,  bitter  substance,  nauseating  to  the  taste,  composed 
mainly  of  the  blunt,  dried  leaves  of  the  plant. 

The  mescal  button  (dried  flowering  top  of  the  peyote  cactus)  is 
from  an  inch  to  an  inch  and  a  half  in  diameter,  one-fourth  of  an  inch 
in  thickness,  with  a  convex  under  surface.  The  button  is  brittle  and 
hard  when  dry.  but  becomes  soft  when  moistened;  it  has  a  very 
bitter,  unpleasant  taste,  and  an  odor  when  moist  which  is  peculiar 
and  disagreeable.  This  odor  is  especially  noticeable  in  the  powdered 
drug. 

DERIVATION  OF  NAME. 

The  correct  commercial  name  in  English  for  the  drug  is  "  pe-yo-te," 
which  is  an  adapted  form  of  the  Spanish  spelling  "  pe-llo-te  "  which, 
according  to  the  Mexican  variation  in  pronunciation,  is  called  pe- 
yo-te,  although  always  written  in  Spanish  "pellote."  This  name 
is  of  Aztec  origin,  derived  from  the  Nahuatl  word  "  peyotl,'  meaning 
cocoon.  The  term  "peyotl"  was,  and  is  still,  applied  in  Mexico  to 
other  plants  than  Lophophora,  notably  to  several  species  of  Cacalia, 
the  principal  one  of  which  is  Cacalia  cordifolia,  which  is  used  by  the 
Mexican  Indians  as  a  medicine  but  not  as  an  intoxicant.  It  was  evi 
dently  the  practice  of  the  Aztecs  to  name  plants  from  their  real  or 
fancied  resemblance  of  the  whole,  or  some  part,  to  a  well-known 
object.  In  the  case  of  Cacalia  it  was  the  velvety,  tuberous  roots, 
which  from  their  form  and  indument  could  be  likened  to  the  cocoon 
of  a  moth.  In  the  case  of  Lophophora  it  was  the  flowering  top. 


Courtesy  of  l'n.f< 


LOPHOPHORA    WILLIAMS!  I. 


Typical  form  with  dofinod  ribs.  Photoprruph  of  specimen  in  the  Cacfn=  Hou°ft  of  theTT.  S.  Depart 
uicnt  .of  Agriculture,  cullucled  in  IU1U,  mi  the  llaeienda  de  Cudros,  near  Mazu^il,  State  ui  ZacaLeca.i 
Mexico,  by  Dr.  Elswood  ChafTey.  Photograph  natural  size. 


PEYOTE.  3 

The  term  "  mescal "  as  applied  to  peyote  should  not  be  confused 
with  the  distilled  liquor  mescal  of  Mexico,  although  it  is  an  exten 
sion  of  the  same  word.  In  Mexico  the  most  common  intoxicant  is 
mescal,  and  because  of  its  effects  the  name  was  carried  over  by  the 
American  Indians  to  peyote  for  the  reason  that  it  also  intoxicates. 
It  was  the  simplest  way  to  explain  wrhat  it  would  do.  If  some  new 
intoxicating  drug  were  discovered  and  it  was  desired  to  explain  its 
effect  to  the  Mexican  Indians,  the  quickest  and  easiest  way  would  be 
to  call  it  whisky,  for  they  all  know  the  effect  of  whisky  just  as  the 
American  Indians  of  the  southwestern  part  of  the  United  States 
knew  what  mescal  would  do.  In  Mexico  mescal  is  not  a  synonym  for 
peyote,  but  in  the  United  States  it  may  be  properly  so  used,  but  the 
better  word  is  "  peyote." 

The  peyote  of  commerce  is  often  called  "  mescal  buttons.'7  from 
the  resemblance  of  the  dried,  flowering  tops  to  coat  buttons.  There 
is  no  more  reason  for  calling  the  peyote  buttons  mescal  "  beans  " 
than  there  is  for  calling  anything  else  a  bean  which  is  not  a  bean  and 
has  no  resemblance  to  a  bean.  The  preferable  name  for  the  drug 
is  peyote.  The  accepted  synonyms  are  "  mescal "  and  "  mescal  but 
tons."  The  term  "  mescal  beans  "  should  not  be  used  at  all  as  a 
name  for  peyote  by  any  person  who  has  the  slightest  regard  for 
scientific  designations  or  for  any  form  of  accurate  nomenclature. 

INDIAN  NAMES  FOR  PEYOTE. 

Among  both  the  Indians  of  Mexico  and  the  United  States  the  drug 
is  known  by  various  names:  "  xicori  "  by  the  Huicholes  of  Jalisco; 
"  hikori,"  or  "  hikuli  "  by  the  Tarahumaris  of  Chihuahua ;  "  kamaba  " 
by  the  Tepehuanes  of  Durango ;  "  ho "  by  the  Mescalero  Apaches, 
who  formerly  ranged  as  far  south  as  Coahuila;  "  seni "  by  the 
Kiowas ;  and  "  wokowi  "  by  the  Commaches,  some  of  whom  formerly 
lived  in  the  State  of  Chihuahua.  The  name  "  peyote  "  has  survived 
as  a  general  commercial  term,  in  common  with  the  less  correct  desig 
nations  of  "  mescal  "  and  "  mescal  buttons." 

BOTANICAL  NAME  OF  PEYOTE. 

The  correct  botanical  name  for  peyote  is  Lophophora  luilliamsii. 
Until  Safford  showed,  in  1915,  that  Lophophora  lewinii  and  Lopho 
phora  williamsii  are  identical,  it  was  believed  that  various  species 
of  Lophophora  were  represented  in  commercial  peyote.  In  the  nine 
teenth  edition  of  the  United  States  Dispensatory  the  drug  is  indexed 
as  "  pellote "  (peyote)  and  "  anhalonium,"  being  described  under 
the  latter  name.  The  species  of  anhalonium  mentioned  are  A.  lewinii, 
A.  williamsii,  and  A.  jourdanianum.  The  two  principal  species  are 
now  known  to  be  identical. 

96124—22 2 


4  PEYOTE. 

BOTANICAL  VARIATIONS. 

Lophophora  williamsii  is  quite  variable;  sometimes  its  ribs  instead 
of  being  vertical  are  more  or  less  diagonal  or  spiral,  and  instead  of 
being  separated  by  straight  grooves  the  latter  are  sinuous,  or  the 
tubercles  may  be  irregularly  arranged.  One  form  was  described  by 
Hennings  as  a  distinct  species  under  the  name  Anhalonium  lewinii, 
but  the  type  plant  described  and  figured  by  him  was,  it  is  said,  a 
boiled  up  "  mescal  button  "  obtained  from  a  pharmaceutical  manu 
facturing  house.  This  specimen  was  in  all  probability  gathered  in 
the  vicinity  of  Laredo,  Tex.  In  this  form  the  ribs  are  usually  13  in 
number,  separated  by  strongly  sinuous  grooves.  Sometimes  there 
are  12  ribs,  or  even  as  few  as  9;  while  in  the  typical  L.  williamsii 
there  are  usually  8  ribs,  sometimes  as  many  as  10,  separated  by 
straight,  or  almost  straight,  lines.  It  has  been  wrongly  asserted 
that  the  petals  of  L.  lewinii  are  yellow.  Safford  has  proved  that 
they  have  rose-tinted  flowers  which  are  in  no  way  distinguishable  in 
form  or  color  from  those  of  L.  williamsii.  He  has  further  shown 
that  typical  plants  of  L.  williamsii  and  L.  lewinii  may  be  found  in  the 
same  cluster  growing  from  a  common  base.  Another  form  which 
departs*  from  the  typical  L.  williamsii  even  more  than  the  plant 
figured  by  Hennings  has  been  shown  by  Safford  to  be  but  a  variety ; 
hence,  all  narcotic  peyote  may  be  properly  classified,  botanically, 
under  the  genus  Lophophora  williamsii,  thus  eliminating  the  several 
names  which  arose  from  incorrect  reference  of  the  plant. 

GEOGRAPHICAL  DISTRIBUTION. 

The  geographical  range  of  the  genus  Lophophora  is  from  the 
southern  border  of  Texas  along  the  Eio  Grande  and  from  the  mouth 
of  the  Pecos  River  southeastward  to  the  southern  part  of  Queretaro, 
Mexico. 

As  stated  elsewhere,  the  peyote  used  by  the  Indians  of  the  United 
States  comes  from  the  southern  part  of  Texas  and  from  the  northern 
part  of  Mexico,  the  principal  markets  being  Eagle  Pass,  Laredo,  and 
Aguilares. 

THE  SACRED  MUSHROOM  OF  THE  AZTECS. 

There  can  be  no  longer  any  doubt  as  to  the  identity  of  the  sacred 
mushroom  of  the  Aztecs,  which  was  called  "  teonanacatl,"  with  peyote. 
The  widespread  historical  interest  associated  with  the  former  jus 
tifies  the  republishing  of  Professor  Safford's  summary  of  his  re- , 
searches,  which  is  a  parjLof  his  article  entitled  "An  Aztec  narcotic,'* 
which  appeareoYln  tlpg %ily  number  of  the  Journal  of  Heredity  for  the 
year  1915,  Volume  W,  No.  7. 


of  Pr^ieaoor  Safford. 


ANOTHER   TYPE   OF   LOPHOPHORA. 


in  190S,  by  F.  E.  Loyd.    Photograph  natural  size. 


PEYOTE.  5 

After  comparing:  the  preceding  accounts  of  the  use  of  narcotics  by  the  ancient 
Mexicans  and  by  the  Indians  of  the  present  day,  separated  in  time  by  three 
centuries  and  in  space  by  thousands  of  miles,  there  can  remain  no  doubt  that  the 
rnushroom-like  peyote  used  by  our  own  Indians  in  the  United  States,  which 
we  know  to  be  identical  with  the  sacred  "  hikuli "  or  "  hicori  "  of  the  Sierra 
Madre  Indians,  is  the  same  drug  which  was  called  "  teonanacatl,"  or  "/sacred 
mushrooms."  by  the  Aztecs.  According  to  the  earliest  writers,  it  was  endemic 
in  the  land  of  the  Chichirnecas,  the  early  home  of  our  Apaches,  Comanches, 
and  Kiowas,  which  is  also  the  source  of  the  modern  supply.  The  ancient  Mexi 
cans,  like  the  Huicholes  and  Tarahumaris  of  the  present  day,  obtained  their 
supply  of  the  drugs  through  the  medium  of  messengers,  consecrated  for  the 
purpose,  who  observed  certain  religious  rites  in  collecting  it  and  who  were 
received  with  ceremonial  honors  on  their  return.  Although  the  Indians  on  our 
northern  reservations  now  receive  it  through  the  medium  of  the  parcel  post,  yet 
they  attribute  to  it  the  same  divine  properties  as  did  the  ancient  Mexicans  and 
combine  its  worship  with  the  religion  they  have  received  from  Christian  mission 
aries.  It  is  only  natural  that  those  who  are  engaged  in  the  work  of  Christian 
izing  and  uplifting  our  Indians  should  try?  like  the  early  Spanish  missionaries, 
to  stamp  out  its  use.  On  the  other  band,  many  of  the  Indians  who  use  the 
narcotic  declare  they  take  it  ns  a  kind  of  sacrament  or  communion,  and  that 
iflieTps  them  to  turn  from  wickedness  amnead_good__lives. 

A  knowledge  of  botany  has  been  attributed  to  the  Aztecs  which  they  were  far 
from  possessing.  Their  plant  names  show  that  the  classification  of  plants  was 
not  based  upon  real  affinities,  and  it  is  very  probable  that  they  had  not  the  slight 
est  notion  of  the  difference  between  a  flowering  plant  and  a  fungus.  Certainly 
they  applied  the  name  "  nanacatl "  and  "  nanacace  "  to  both  fungi  and  flower 
ing  plants  and  the  name  "  peyotl "  to  both  the  narcotic  cactus,  Lophophora,  and 
to  the  tuber-bearing  composite,  Cacalia.  The  botanical  knowledge  of  the  early 
Spanish  writers,  Sahagun,  Hernandez,  Ortega,  and  Jacinto  de  la  Serna,  was 
perhaps  not  much  more  extensive;  their  descriptions  were  so  inadequate  that 
even  to  the  present  day  the  chief  narcotic  of  the  Aztecs.  "  ololiuhqui,"  which 
they  all  mention,  remains  unidentified.  They  knew  these  narcotic  drugs  only 
in  their  dry  state,  and  the  general  appearance  of  the  "  peyotl "  brought  from 
the  vicinity  of  Zacatecas  was  so  very  different  from  the  "  teonanacatl "  from 
the  more  northerly  region  inhabited  by  the  Chichimecas  that  the  two  forms 
might  easily  have  been  regarded  as  coming  from  distinct  plants. 

As  far  as  the  author  knows,  this  is  the  first  time  that  the  identity  of  the 
"  sacred  mushroom  "  of  the  Aztecs  with  the  narcotic  cactus  known  botanically 
as  LophopJwra  itfillwm'Sti  has  been  pointed  out.  That  it  should  have  been 
mistaken  by  the  early  Spaniards  for  a  mushroom  is  not  surprising  when  one 
notices  the  remarkable  resemblance  of  the  dried  buttons  to  peltate  fungi  and 
also  bears  in  mind  that  the  common  potato  (Solanum  tuberosum)  on  its  intro 
duction  into  Europe  was  popularly  regarded  as  a  kind  of  truffle,  a  fact  which  is 
recorded  by  Its  German  name,  "kartoffel"  or  "  tartuffel." 

;••    r;t:-"-m<t    '.,::!;     •  <"'^*'    .?•"          -     (.  >'.-.!       -Jjjj-jt'     -     '.-M 

PEYOTE  IN  COMMERCE. 

Peyote  has  not  attained  a  prominent  place  as  an  article  of  com 
merce,  principally  because  of  the  limited  demand  for  it  in  the  chan 
nels  of  trade.     Among  the  Mexican  Indians  it  is  gathered  and  dried 
for  sale  to  local  users,  and  a  few  merchants  take  it  in  trade  at  their 
^  stores   for  the  Indian  market  of  the  United   States.     The  largest 


6  PEYOTE. 

dealers  are  L.  Yillegos  &  Co.  and  Wormser  Bros.,  both  of  Laredo, 
Tex.  These  two  houses  supply  most  of  the  peyote  consumed  by  the 
Indians  of  Wyoming,  Nebraska,  Wisconsin.  Iowa,  and  perhaps  the 
Dakotas.  and  also  a  considerable  part  of  that  which  is  used  by  the 
Oklahoma  Indians,  particularly  the  Osages.  The  chief  source  of 
supply  for  the  Indians  of  the  southern  part  of  Oklahoma  and  for 
other  Indians  not  included  in  the  line  of  runners  of  the  first  pil 
grimage  organization  is  through  Eagle  Pass.  El  Paso.  Aguilares, 
and  other  Texas  towns  along  the  Rio  Grande,  where  it  is  purchased 
from  Indians  or  Mexicans,  who  gather  and  dry  it.  or  from  small 
dealers.  One  Indian  will  always  divide  his  supply  of  peyote  with 
another  Indian,  and  frequently  the  only  purchase  consideration  is 
the  strengthening  of  "  the  tie  that  binds." 

The  principal  means  of  transporting  peyote  among  the  Indians  is 
in  suit  cases  of  pilgrims.  While  pilgrimages  to  peyote-land  are  an 
established  feature  of  the  use  of  the  drug,  the  commercial  consid 
eration  seems  to  be  subordinate  to  the  u  missionary  spirit ''  which 
seeks  to  spread  the  mescal  gospel  among  the  Indians. 

Among  certain  tribes  of  Indians  in  Mexico  the  gathering  of  peyote 
is  a  sacred  act  which  must  be  celebrated  by  elaborate  rites  and  cere 
monies.  Those  who  take  part  decorate  their  hats  and  their  hair  with 
feathers,  indicate  with  paint,  which  they  apply  to  their  faces,  the 
distinctive  attributes  of  their  caste  and  of  their  gods,  but  the  peyote 
which  finds  its  way  to  the  "  church  tents "  of  the  Indians  of  the 
United  States  had  no  part  in  pagan  rites  during  the  process  of  its 
preparation  for  use.  It  is,  as  a  rule,  clipped  from  the  cactus  in  Oc 
tober  and  dried  for  a  month  before  it  is  placed  on  the  market.  Before 
the  war  it  cost  the  consumer  in  Laredo  $o  a  thousand  buttons;  the 
merchants  pay  $2.50  a  thousand  for  it.  A  gatherer  will  not  average 
more  than  200  buttons  a  day,  it  is  said,  and  he  must  dry  them  for  a 
month  before  taking  them  to  the  merchant,  and  then  perhaps  take 
his  pay  in  trade.  If  he  is  fortunate  enough  to  meet  a  "pilgrim,7' 
which  is  possible  ;  towns  other  than  Laredo,  at  which  place  the 
sale  is  practically  regulated  by  contracts  with  the  two  firms  that 
handle  the  drug,  he  may  get  twice  the  ordinary  price  for  his  product. 
Peyote  grows  on  both  sides  of  the  Rio  Grande.  That  which  is 
sold  by  the  Laredo  houses  is  derived  principally  from  the  cactus 
hills  on  the  American  side.  A  special  agent  of  the  Bureau  of  Indian 
Affairs  visited  the  little  Mexican  town  situated  among  these  hills — 
a  town  which  is  practically  supported  by  the  peyote  industry — and 
found  that  the  supposed  curative  effect  of  the  drug  has  not  been  mani 
fested  there,  as  is  evidenced  by  the  fact  that  the  cemetery  is  larger 
than  the  town  itself.  If  peyote  is  the  great  healing  agent  that  it  is 
claimed  to  be,  surely,  like  the  proverbial  prophet,  paraphrasing  the 
statement  to  fit  the  application,  it  is  without  healing  power  in  its 


Legend  by  Professor  Safford. 

THE  AZTEC   NARCOTIC   CACTUS,  TEONANACATL. 

" God's  Flesh,"  or  "Sacred  Mushroom"  of  the  Aztecs.  Disks  cut  from  the  crown  of  the  cactus 
Lophophora  williamsii  and  dried.  Photograph  of  specimens  received  by  the  Bureau  of  Chemistry 
U.  P.  Do.partmpnl  of  Agriculture,  from  the  Indian  Office  in  1914.  Now  widely  used  as  a  narcotic 
by  Indians  oi  tin-  United  States.  Natural  size. 


PEYOTE.  7 

own  country — in  its  own  home  town — except  in  its  tendency  to  heal 
by  hastening  the  coming  of  the  last  sleep  from  which  there  is  no 
awakening  until  the  day  dawns  for  the  dead  to  give  their  testimony  in 
the  courts  of  eternity. 

EARLY  MISSIONARY  REPORTS  CONCERNING  SACRED  PLANTS. 

According  to  the  reports  of  the  early  missionaries,  the  Indians, 
particularly  those  of  Mexico,  held  in  veneration  various  plants  which 
they  conceived  to  be  incarnations  of  spirits,  some  with  potentialities 
for  good  and  others  decidedly  evil  in  character.  These  plants  were 
shown  great  honor  and  courtesy — the  good,  in  order  to  invoke  their 
favors ;  the  bad,  as  an  appeasement  to  induce  them  to  withhold  their 
evil  influences.  Indian  mythology  is  a  blend  of  superstitions  woven 
around  a  talking  plant  or  animal,  concerning  itself  with  the  affairs 
of  human  life.  The  cutting  down  of  a  tree  was  often  the  occasion  for 
the  observance  of  religious  rites  that  would  explain  to  the  embodied 
spirit  that,  after  due  consideration,  the  tree  body  which  he  inhabited 
was  the  most  suited  material  that  could  be  found  for  some  higher 
purpose,  as  the  bridging  of  a  stream  or  the  erection,  perhaps,  of  a 
totem  pole,  and  that  in  bringing  about  its  death  its  human  friends 
had  sought  to  show  their  veneration,  hoping  thus  to  insure  for  them 
selves  the  continued  favor  of  the  spirit  now  free  to  reincarnate  and 
manifest  its  power  in  another  form. 

It  is  not  surprising  that  narcotic  plants  should  have  been  subject  to 
marked  veneration.  Bancroft  refers  to  a  sacred  fungus,  or  mush 
room,  which  the  Indians  of  Mexico  called  the  "  flesh  of  God,"  which 
excited  the  passions  and  caused  the  partaker  to  see  snakes  and  divers 
other  visions.  Padre  Bernardino  Sahagun,  writing  before  the  year 
1569  of  the  Chichimeca  Indians  of  the  northern  part  of  Mexico, 
referred  to  their  having  discovered  evil  mushrooms  which  intoxi 
cated  like  wine.  It  is  now  known  with  almost  certainty  that  the  so- 
called  mescal  button  is  what  was  referred  to  as  a  fungus,  or  evil 
mushroom,  for  three  centuries  of  investigation  have  failed  to  reveal 
that  Mexico  is  or  ever  has  been  the  home  of  fungus  with  intoxi 
cating  properties. 

A  physician.  Dr.  Francisco  Hernandez,  who  was  sent  by  the  King 
of  Spain  in  1570  to  study  the  resources  of  Mexico,  in  writing  of  the 
peyote  cactus  said : 

The  root  is  of  nearly  medium  size,  sending  forth  no  branches  nor  leaves  above 
ground,  but  with  a  certain  woolliness  adhering  to  it  on  account  of  which  it 
could  not  be  aptly  figured  by  me.  Both  men  and  women  are  said  to  be  harmed 
by  it.  It  appears  to  be  of  sweetish  taste  and  moderately  hot.  Ground  up  and 
applied  to  painful  joints  it  is  said  to  give  relief.  Wonderful  properties  are  at 
tributed  to  this  root.  It  causes  those  devouring  it  to  be  able  to  foresee  and  to 
predict  things;  such,  for  instance,  as  whether  on  the  following  day  the  enemy 


8  PEYOTE. 

will  make  an  attack  upon  them  or  whether  the  weather  will  continue  favor 
able,  or  to  discern  who  has  stolen  from  them  some  utensil  or  anything  else,  and 
other  things  of  like  nature  which  the  Chichimecas  really  believe  they  have 
found  out ;  on  which  account  this  root  scarcely  issues  forth  but  conceals  itself  in 
the  ground,  as  if  it  did  not  wish  to  harm  those  who  discover  it  and  eat  it. 

WORSHIP  OF  THE  CACTUS. 

Mr.  Havelock  Ellis  asserts  that  there  are  five  or  six  allied  species 
of  cacti  which  the  Indians  of  Mexico  use  and  treat  with  great  rev 
erence,  and  he  quotes  Lumholtz  as  his  authority  for  saying  that  the 
Tarahumari,  one  of  the  tribes  of  that  country,  worship  various  cacti 
as  gods,  to  be  approached  only  in  the  most  deferential  manner  with 
uncovered  heads.  When  they  wish  to  obtain  these  cacti  they  cense 
themselves  with  copal  incense,  and,  with  profound  respect  and  watch 
ful  tenderness,  dig  them  up,  exercising  great  care  that  they  do  not 
hurt  the  gods,  while  women  and  children  are  warned  from  the  spot. 
It  is  said  that  even  Christian  Indians  regard  Hikori.  the  cactus  god, 
as  coequal  with  their  own  divinity  and  make  the  sign  of  the  cross 
in  the  presence  of  the  cactus  god.  At  all  festivals,  or  fiestas,  as  they 
are  called  in  the  Spanish  language.  Hikori  is  made  into  a  drink  and 
consumed  by  the  medicine  man,  or  certain  selected  Indians,  who 
sing  as  they  partake  of  it,  invoking  Hikori  to  grant  "  beautiful  in 
toxication,"  making  at  the  same  time  a  rasping  noise  with  sticks, 
while  men  and  women  perform  a  fantastic  and  picturesque  cfance — 
the  women  by  themselves  in  white  petticoats  and  tunics — before 
those  who  are  under  the  influence  of  the  god. 

The  Indians  of  the  United  States  have  departed  from  the  original 
mode  of  worship,  which  limited  the  partakers  to  a  few,  and  the 
prevailing  custom  now  is  open  communion;  nor  is  the  habit  a  vice 
of  men  only,  for  the  women  also  are  sharing  in  its  privileges,  too. 

THE  ATTITUDE  OF  MISSIONARIES. 

To  the  missionary  peyote  is  more  than  a  physiological  problem, 
more  than  a  social  problem.  It  is  more  than  another  "  dope " 
problem  to  be  disposed  of  by  legislating  it  into  the  class  of  drugs 
covered  by  the  national  narcotic  law.  It  is.  as  one  writer  stated.  "  a 
system  of  pagan  worship,  inimical  to  Christianity,  which  has  its 
roots  deep  into  the  historic  past  of  the  red  race,  and  because  of  this 
it  makes  the  strongest  kind  of  an  appeal  to  the  Indians."  Does 
the  red  man  hail  it  as  a  revival  of  an  ancient  religion  altogether  his 
own,  which  is  sent  to  him  in  divine  purpose  to  take  the  place  of  the 
white  man's  foreign  religion,  or  is  this  a  pretense?  To  the  mis 
sionary  the  use  of  peyote  is  paganism  arrayed  against  Christianity — 
the  power  of  a  drug  against  the  elevating  influence  of  the  Cross.  * 


Photograph  and  legend  by  Safford. 


"THE   DEVIL'S   ROOT." 


Peyotl  Za^.iiecensis   (Lophophora   williamsii).     "The  root  is  of  nearly  medium  size,  sending  forth  no 
branches  nor  leaves  above  ground,  but  with  a  certain  wooliness  adhering  to  it."    Photograph  natural  size. 


PEYOTE.  9 

CEREMONIAL  USE  OF  PEYOTE  BY  THE  INDIANS. 

Professor  Safford  in  his  article,  "An  Aztec  narcotic,"  says : 

The  first  to  bring  to  public  notice  the  ceremonial  use  of  this  narcotic  by 
existing  tribes  of  Indians  was  James  Mooney,  of  the  Bureau  of  American 
Ethnology,  in  a  paper  read  before  the  Anthropological  Society  of  Washington 
on  November  3,  1891.  His  attention  had  been  directed  to  it  while  making  in 
vestigations  among  the  Kiowas,  who  are  descendants  of  one  of  the  tribes 
known  to  the  Aztecs  by  the  name  of  "  Chichimecas."  Mr.  Mooney  found  that 
these  Indians  attribute  divine  powers  to  the  drug,  and  the  ceremony  attend 
ing  its  use  is  of  the  nature  of  a  religious  rite  in  which  all  the  tribes  of  the 
southern  plains  take  part. 

The  Kiowas  and  other  Indians  of  Oklahoma  receive  the  greater  part  of 
their  supply  of  the  drug  from  traders  who  bring  it  from  the  vicinity  of  Laredo, 

Tex.,  in  the  form  of  "  mescal  buttons." 

******* 

Peyote  meetings  are  nocturnal,  usually  beginning  Saturday  night  *  *  *. 
The  ceremony  occupies  from  12  to  14  hours,  beginning  about  9  or  10  o'clock 
and  lasting  until  early  noon  of  the  next  day.  Saturday  night  is  now  the  time 
usually  selected  in  deference  to  the  white  man's  idea  of  Sunday  as  a  sacred 
day  and  a  day  of  rest.  The  worshipers  sit  in  a  circle  around  the  inside  of 
the  sacred  tipi  with  a  fire  blazing  in  the  center.  The  exercises  open  with  a 
prayer  by  the  leader,  who  then  hands  each  man  four  mescals,  which  he  takes 
and  eats  in  quick  succession,  first  plucking  out  the  small  tuft  of  down  from 
the  center.  In  eating,  the  dry  mescal  is  first  chewed  in  the  mouth,  then  rolled 
into  a  large  pellet  between  the  hands  and  swallowed,  the  man  rubbing  his 
breast  and  the  back  of  has  neck  at  the  same  time  to  aid  the  descent.  After 
this  first  round  the  leader  takes  the  rattle,  while  his  assistant  takes  the  drum, 
and  together  they  sing  the  first  four  times,  with  full  voices,  at  the  same  time 
beating  the  drum  and  shaking  the  rattle  with  all  the  strength  of  their  arms. 
The  drum  and  rattle  are  then  handed  to  the  next  couple,  and  so  the  song  goes 
on  around  and  around  the  circle — with  only  a  break  for  the  baptismal  ceremony 
at  midnight  and  another  for  the  daylight  ceremony — until  perhaps  9  o'clock 
the  next  morning.  Then  the  instruments  are  passed  out  of  the  tipi,  the  sacred 
foods  are  eaten,  and  the  ceremony  is  at  an  end.  *  *  *  The  dinner,  which 
is  given  an  hour  or  two  after  the  ceremony,  is  always  as  elaborate  a  feast 
as  the  host  can  provide.  The  rest  of  the  day  is  spent  in  gossiping,  smoking, 
and  singing  the  new  songs,  until  it  is  time  to  return  home. 

THE  OLD-TIME  PEYOTE  MEETING. 

Safford  in  one  of  his  research  articles  on  peyote  includes  a  de 
scription  of  a  peyote  meeting,  written  in  1754  by  Padre  Jose  Ortega, 
in  which  the  drug  was  referred  to  as  "  raiz  diabolica,"  or  devil's  root. 
It  must  have  been  the  custom  in  those  days  to  use  both  peyote  and 
alcoholic  drinks  on  the  occasion  of  the  celebration  of  these  fiestas,  as 
may  be  seen  by  the  following  record  of  happenings,  written  by  the 
father  who  had  witnessed  many  such  functions : 

Close  to  the  musician  was  seated  the  leader  of  the  singing,  whose  business 
it  was  to  mark  the  time.  Each  of  these  had  his  assistants  to  take  his  place 
when  he  should  become  fatigued.  Near  by  was  placed  a  tray  filled  with  peyote, 
which  is  a  diabolical  root  that  is  ground  up  and  drunk  by  them  so  that  they 


10  PEYOTE. 

may  not  become  weakened  by  the  exhausting  effects  of  so  long  a  function,  whicii 
they  began  by  forming  as  large  a  circle  of  men  and  women  as  could  occupy 
the  space  of  ground  that  had  been  swept  off  for  this  purpose.  One  after  the 
other  went  dancing  in.  a  ring,  or  marking  time  with  their  feet,  keeping  in  the 
middle  the  musician  and  the  choirmaster  whom  they  had  invited,  and  singing 
in  the  same  dispassionate  tone  that  he  had  set  them.  They  would  dance  all 
night,  from  5  o'clock  in  the  evening  to  7  o'clock  in  the  morning,  without 
stopping  or  leaving  the  circle.  When  the  dance  was  ended,  all  stood  who  could 
hold  themselves  on  their  feet,  for  the  majority  from  the  peyote  and  the  wine 
which  they  'drank  were  unable  to  utilize  their  legs  to  hold  themselves  upright. 

In  the  same  article  there  also  appears  an  account  written  in  the 
sixteenth  century — written  before  Sir  Francis  Drake  set  out  upon  his 
journey  around  the  world,  and  before  tobacco,  which  was  one  of  the 
sacred  plants  of  the  Indians  of  Mexico,  was  carried  to  England. 
Padre  Bernardino  Sahagun,  the  first  writer  on  peyote,  is  quoted  as 
follows : 

The  first  thing  eaten  at  the  party  was  certain  black  mushrooms,  which  in 
toxicate  and  cause  visions  to  be  seen  and  even  provoke  sensuousness.  These 
they  ate  before  the  break  of  day,  and  they  also  drank  chocolate  before  dawn. 
The  mushrooms  they  ate  with  sirup  and  when  they  began  to  feel  the  effect  they 
began  to  dance;  some  sang;  others  wept  becaiise  they  were  already  intoxicated 
by  the  mushrooms;  and  some  did  not  wish  to  sing,  but  seated  themselves  in 
their  rooms  and  remained  there  as  though  meditating.  Some  had  visions  that 
they  were  dying  and  shed  tears;  others  imagined  that  some  wild  beast  was 
devouring  them ;  others  that  they  were  capturing  prisoners  in  warfare ;  others 
that  they  were  rich ;  others  that  they  had  many  slaves ;  others  that  they  had 
committed  serious  crimes  and  were  to  be  put  to  death  as  a  penalty ;  others 
that  they  had  been  guilty  of  theft  and  were  to  be  executed ;  and  many  other 
visions  were  seen  by  them.  After  the  intoxication  of  the  mushrooms  had 
passed  off  they  conversed  with  one  another  about  the  visions  they  had  seen. 

Padre  Jacinto  de  la  Serna  in  describing  a  meeting  of  conjurers 
held  in  July,  1626,  mentions  the  use  of  a  mushroom  that  had  similar 
effects  to  peyote.  These  mushrooms  were  administered  with  pulque 
soon  after  midnight  to  the  members  of  the  congregation,  after  the 
manner  of  communion.  Such  celebrations  were  closed  by  drinking 
"  an  abundant  quantity  of  pulque,  so  that  the  mushrooms  on  their 
part  and  the  pulque  on  its  part  took  away  their  reason,  which  was  a 
pity." 

Whether  the  conjurers  or  sorcerers  used  peyote  or  a  poisonous 
mushroom  or  some  other  drug  was  in  doubt  for  many  years,  but 
since  the  scientists  have  never  discovered  such  a  mushroom  and 
because  of  the  fact  that  peyote,  on  account  of  its  resemblance  in  the 
dried  state  to  a  mushroom,  was  frequently  referred  to  as  "mush 
room."  it  is  now  believed  that  the  drug  used  by  the  conjurers  was 
none  other  than  peyote.  Safford,  in  fact,  identifies  the  sacred  mush 
room  of  the  Aztecs  with  the  narcotic  cactus  known  botanically  as 
Lophophora  williamsii. 


THE  SOUTHERN   TYPE. 

Yuung  plant  oi  Lophophora  from  Higuerillos,  State  of  Qucretaro,  Mexico,  the  southern  limit  of  the 
genus.    Collected  in  1905  by  Dr.  J.  N.  Rose.    Photograph  natural  size. 

10 


PEYOTE.  11 

Father  de  la  Serna  said  that  while  very  little  could  be  ascertained 
about  the  conjurers,  whom  he  characterized  as  rascals,  "  it  stands  to 
reason  that  they  must  have  a  pact  with  the  devil/'  Thus  it  is  seen 
that  peyote  has  not  always  kept  respectable  company,  for,  in  its  use 
by  the  conjurers  referred  to  who  were  feared  because  of  the  evil  that 
they  did.  the  purpose  to  which  it  was  dedicated  was  far  removed 
from  good — it  was  indeed  an  agent  of  death. 

AN  OFFICIAL  DESCRIPTION  OF  A  MODERN  PEYOTE  MEETING. 

The  Handbook  of  North  American  Indians,  issued  by  the  Bureau 
of  Ethnology,  describes  a  peyote  meeting  thus: 

Among  the  Kiowas,  Comanches,  and  other  plains  tribes  it  is  rather  a  cere 
mony  of  prayer  and  quiet  contemplation.  It  is  usually  performed  as  an  invo 
cation  for  the  recovery  of  some  sick  person.  It  is  held  in  a  tipi,  specially 
erected  for  the  purpose,  and  begins  usually  at  night,  continuing  until  the  sun 
is  well  up  in  the  morning.  As  many  men  as  can  sit  comfortably  within  the  tipi 
circle  may  participate,  but,  as  a  rule,  women  do  not  take  part  in  the  ceremony 
proper,  but  occupy  themselves  with  the  preparation  of  the  sacred  food  and  of 
the  feast  in  which  all  join  at  the  close  of  the  performance.  A  fire  is  kept  burn 
ing  in  the  center  of  the  tipi,  inclosed  within  a  crescent-shaped  mound,  on  the  top 
of  which  is  placed  a  sacred  peyote.  Following  an  opening  prayer  by  the  chief 
priest,  four  peyotes  are  distributed  to  each  participant,  who  chews  and  swallows 
them,  after  which  the  sacred  songs  begin  to  the  accompaniment  of  the  drum 
and  rattle,  each  man  singing  four  songs  in  turn,  and  are  kept  up  all  night, 
varied  by  the  intervals  of  prayer  and  other  distributions  of  peyote,  with  a 
peculiar  baptismal  ceremony  at  midnight.  The  number  of  "buttons"  eaten 
by  one  individual  during  the  night  varies  from  10  to  40,  and  even  more,  the 
drug  producing  a  sort  of  spiritual  exaltation  differing  entirely  from  that  pro 
duced  by  any  other  known  drug  and  apparently  without  reaction.  The  effect 
is  heightened  by  the  weird  lullaby  of  the  songs,  the  constant  sound  of  the  drum 
and  rattle,  and  the  fitful  glare  of  the  fire. 

THE  PEYOTE  RELIGION. 

Peyote  has  been  used  in  the  ceremonies  of  pagan  forms  of  worship 
among  the  Indians  of  Mexico  from  time  immemorial — long  before 
the  coming  of  the  Spaniards  and  the  gospel  of  the  Cross.  The  cere 
monies  pertaining  to  its  use  in  religious  functions  have  been  modified 
by  the  influence  of  Christian  contact,  and  to  some  extent  made  to 
conform  to  denominational  practices  best  understood. 

In  Oklahoma  the  Peyote  Church  has  been  chartered  under  the 
name  of  the  Native  American  Church.  It  is  probable  that  other 
States  will  grant  charters  to  the  cult,  but  in  doing  so  will  they  be 
preserving  the  right  of  religious  freedom,  or  will  they  be  giving 
charters  to  organized  bodies  to  use  a  habit-forming  harmful  drug? 
In  the  opinion  of  man}",  to  give  recognition  to  the  Peyote  Christian 
Church  is  as  incongruous  as  it  would  be  to  recognize  the  Opium 
Christian  Church,  or  the  Cocaine  Society  of  Christians. 
96124—22 3 


12  PEYOTE. 

THE  GROWTH  OF  THE  PEYOTE  CULT. 

The  use  of  peyote  by  the  Indians  of  the  United  States  has  not  been 
common  for  more  than  a  quarter  of  a  century,  though  it  has  been 
used  beyond  that  period  of  time  by  a  few  of  the  tribes,  notably  the. 
Kiowas  and  Gomanches.  From  the  southern  tribes  the  habit  has 
gradually  spread  northward,  perhaps  as  far  as  the  Canadian  border, 
dropping,  as  it  moves  away  from  its  ancestral  home,  many  of  its 
pagan  forms  to  take  on  certain  characteristics  of  Christianity,  until 
it  now  poses  as  Christian  religion  and  its  priests  assume  to  administer 
the  sacraments,  and  some  claim  the  right  to  celebrate  the  marriage 
ceremony.  It  has  appealed  with  singular  force  to  the  Plains  Indians, 
among  whom  it  supplanted  the  "  Messiah  craze."  Where  Shake  rism 
thrives  peyote  is  not  popular,  for  the  former  seems  to  give  the  In 
dians  an  avenue  for  the  outlet  of  their  emotional  nature  and  satis 
fies  their  pride  in  the  possession  of  a  distinctive  Indian  religion. 

The  extension  of  the  peyote  religion  is  due  to  active  missionary 
efforts  on  the  part  of  those  who  saw  in  it  an  opportunity  to  gain 
personal  leadership  in  promoting  the  tenets  of  a  cult  whose  emblem 
of  the  eucharist  is  an  intoxicant  which  stimulates  and  entrances  far 
beyond  the  powers  of  alcohol  and  yet  permits  the  retention  of  con 
sciousness,  thus  leaving  the  mind  free  to  witness,  although  in  help 
lessness,  a  panoramic  scene  of  color  visions  that  transport  the  soul 
into  a  paradise  where  it  is  lost  in  wonder,  love,  and  praise,  or  into  an 
inferno  on  the  wall  of  which  in  fiery  characters  are  written  the  sins 
of  the  observer. 

The  Eeverend  Doctor  Eoe  in  writing  on  the  peyote  cult  ascribed 
its  growth  to  three  reasons,  as  follows : 

1.  It  is  a  drug  habit  producing  pleasurable  excitation  of  the  imagination, 
ordinarily  without  immediate  injurious  effects. 

2.  It  is  a  religion  which  claims  to  be  the  Indian  form  of  Christianity,  and 
there  fore,  makes  a  strong  appeal  to  the  racial  instinct. 

3.' It  is  generally  organized  and  promulgated  by  young  educated  Indians,  who 
thus  find  that  pathway  to  ambitious  prominence  which  is  denied  them  under, 
the  old-time  regime. 

These  three  reasons,  as  modified  by  local  conditions,  or  as  rein 
forced  by  arguments  of  wider  range,  appeal  to  the  Indian  with 
compelling  force— a  new  clan,  an  Indian  religion,  with  a  sacrament 
which  contains  the  incarnate  Holy  Spirit,  and  a  leadership  that 
promises  power  and  honor  to  all  who  will  follow.  What  more  could 
the  poor  Indian  hope  for  on  this  side  of  Jordan's  wave? 

Well  might  the  Reverend  Mr.  Vruwink  seek  to  give  an  explanation 
of  why  the  Indians  do  not  retreat  from  the  danger  which  threatens 
them  when  they  realize  later  on  that  peyote  is  a  curse  industrially, 
economically,  physically,  mentally,  and  morally.  His  pronounce 
ment  is  as  follows : 


SI 


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II 


PEYOTE.  13 

Some  continue  in  the  habit  because  .they  dare  not  stop;  they  are  afraid  of 
the  ridicule  and  threats  of  the  peyote  members.  Others  continue  because  they 
can  not  stop;  they  are  drug  fiends  bound  hand  and  foot.  Still  others  will  not 
stop  because  peyote  means  pleasure,  profit,  and  leadership.  Many  Indians  eat 
peyote  because  of  the  pleasurable  sensations.  It  is  primarily  a  lust  of  the 
flesh — an  indulgence  at  the  expense  of  all  that  makes  for  the  highest  in  manhood 
and  womanhood. 

The  peyote  societies  offer  to  the  returned  students  an  opportunity  to  live  at 
the  expense  of  the  ignorant  and  superstitious  and  be  honored  for  his  cunning 
in  his  own  tribe.  He  beholds  a  pathway  to  leadership — an  ambition  so  dear 
to  the  heart  of  every  real  Indian ;  he  sees  success  and  fame  that  would  be  hard 
to  attain  through  the  channels  of  the  old-time  Indian  societies  or  in  Christian 
churches  in  which  the  doctrines  of  a  meek  and  lowly  life  are  preached;  he  em 
braces  the  chance  and  launches  out  as  a  leader. 

But  fear,  habit,  and  lust  for  pleasure,  profit,  and  power  do  not  account  for 
every  case.  There  is  the  ever-present  factor  of  ignorance.  Few  peyote  eaters 
realize  what  a  dangerous  drug  they  are  dealing  with,  and  many  think  that  it 
is  a  harmless  and  good  medicine,  not  appreciating  the  fact  that  every  time 
peyote  kills  a  pain  it  also  weakens  the  heart  action  and  shortens  life. 

There  are  others  who- may  eat  peyote  believing  that  it  is  a  cure  for  drunken 
ness,  not  knowing  that  when  the  drug  takes  away  the  desire  for  whisky  it  is 
only  Because  the  subject  is  saturated  with  a  drug  which  is  much  worse  than 
whisky  in  its  ultimate  effects  on  the  body  and  mind ;  yes,  and  not  even  dream 
ing  that  an  habitual  peyote  user  is  a  drunkard  just  as  much  as  an  habitual 
user  of  whisky.  The  ignorant  Indian  may  and  does  put  peyote  in  the  place  of 
the  Bible;  in  the  place  of  the  Gospel;  in  the  place  of  the  Holy  Spirit. 

If  these  missionaries.  Doctor  Roe.  who  has  since  died,  and  the 
Reverend  Mr.  Yruwink,  were  not  right  in  their  estimate  of  peyote  and 
its  dangers,  they  thought  they  were,  and  it  was  their  love  for  the 
Indian  race  that  prompted  them  to  send  out  appeals  to  the  good  peo 
ple  of  the  United  States,  to  the  Congress,  and  to  the  churches  to  throw 
out  the  life  line  of  prohibitive  regulation  ere  the  Indian  was  en 
thralled  in  hopeless  slavery  to  a  merciless,  powerful,  habit-forming 
drug. 

RELIGIO-THERAPEUTIC  USE  OF  PEYOTE. 

Among  certain  tribes  of  the  Indians  of  the  United  States  members 
of  the  new  cult  use  a  decoction  of  peyote  as  a  sort  of  holy  water 
which  they  employ  for  the  rites  of  purification  and  for  their  sacra 
ments'  of  baptism  and  communion.  They  administer  the  drug  in 
this  form  or  in  the  dry  state  for  all  classes  of  ailments  in  the  old 
and  young,  and  even  pour  the  holy  water  into  the  ears  of  newborn 
babies. 

Peyote  is  heralded  by  its  devotees  as  a  sovereign  remedy  for  tuber 
culosis  and  social  diseases.  By  its  opponents  it  is  asserted  that  to 
the  habitual  use  of  the  drug  cases  of  imbecility,  insanity,  and  suicide 
have  been  directly  traced. 

It  is  held  by  the  advocates  of  peyote  that  the  drug  destroys  the 
desire  for  liquor.  This  is  probably  true  in  some  cases,  for  the  drug 


14  PEYOTE. 

produces  a  "  more  satisfactory  !?  state  of  intoxication  with  less  of  the 
"  morning  after  "  feeling.  And,  too,  it  is  a  more  respectable  way 
of  getting  drunk,  although  the  habitual  user  of  peyote  to  excess  often 
becomes  a  worthless  member  of  his  tribe,  losing  interest  in  everything 
except  his  besetting  sin. 

Peyote  users  reason  that  because  their  addiction  is  not  character 
ized  by  acts  of  violence  the  Government  should  not  deprive  them 
of  the  use  of  the  narcotic ;  but  the  users  of  morphine  could  urge  this 
plea  also. 

THE  EXTENSION  OF  THE  HABIT. 

From  time  immemorial  the  Indians  of  Mexico  and  those  who 
formerly  lived  in  Texas,  when  it  was  a  part  of  that  country,  have 
used  peyote  for  producing  intoxication  during  their  religious  cere 
monies.  Among  some  of  the  tribes  only  the  leaders  or  "  priests  " 
took  the  drug  and  beheld  the  visions  which  enabled  them  to  pro 
nounce  the  divinations,  but  among  the  Indians  of  the  United  States 
this  practice  has  never  been  in  vogue.  All  the  male  members  par 
take  openly,  and  it  is  said  that  the  women,  when  not  permitted  by 
the  regulations  of  the  local  society  to  eat  peyote  as  participants  in 
the  religious  functions,  take  it  privately.  It  is  certain  that  many  of 
them  are  addicted  to  the  habit  and  that  they  do  not  always  abstain 
when  the}'  attend  a  peyote  festival. 

The  Roman  Catholic  Church  in  Mexico  has  exerted  its  influence 
against  the  peyote  habit  since  the  day  of  the  coming  of  the  first 
missionaries  from  Spain,  and  its  members  in  good  standing  among 
the  Indians  of  Mexico  do  not  take  part  in  peyote  worship.  The  same 
declaration  is  true  with  respect  to  the  relation  of  the  churches  of  all 
denominations  having  missionaries  among  the  Indians.  In  other 
words,  the  churches  do  not  condone  the  use  of  the  peyote,  and  as  the 
Indians  become  addicted  they  withdraw  from  the  churches  and  be 
come  "  peyote  worshipers."' 

HARMFUL  EFFECTS  OF  PEYOTE. 

The  following  excerpts  on  the  harmful  effects  of  peyote  are  taken 
from  correspondence  on  the  subject  in  the  Indian  Office  files : 
The  late  Right  Reverend  Monsignor  Ketcham : 

Those  who  defend  the  practice  of  peyote  eating  contend  that  those  who 
indulge  abstain  from  whisky  and  that  a  marked  improvement  is  noted  in 
their  conduct.  I  presume  that  this  is  only,  an  instance  of  one  evil  supplanting 
another.  One  thing  is  certain,  that  where  the  practice  has  taken  hold  the 
Indians  indulge  to  an  excess,  spending  whole  nights  eating  mescal  and  en 
gaging  in  peculiar  religious  observances  with  which  they  have  surrounded  its 
use.  It  will  scarcely  be  possible  to  regulate  its  use  and  keep  it  within  bounds. 
Systematic  loss  of  sleep  and  overstimulation  by  drug  can  not  serve  anv 


PI-:  VOTE.  15 

useful  purpose.  Those  who  indulge  will  not  be  in  a  condition  to  work  as 
they  should,  and  moreover,  they  will  suffer  physical  and  mental  injury  and, 
of  course,  will  be  losers  morally. 

Thepeyote  is  a  potent  narcotic,  affecting  the  respiratory  and  nervous  systems, 
producing  the  same  character  of  effect  as  the  use  of  opium  and  hashish.  The 
mind  of  the  habitual  user  becomes  affected,  and  the  nervous  energies  are  sapped. 
In  some  instances  persons  in  a  weak  state  of  health  have  died  as  a  result  of  an 
excessive  indulgence  in  this  narcotic.  The  Indians  claim  that  it  has  valuable 
medical  properties,  but  the  scientists  of  the  Government  and  the  professors 
in  the  schools  of  pharmacy  who  have  investigated  it  deny  that  it  has  any 
medicinal  properties  whatever.  It  has  been  commended  by  some  because 
of  the  alleged  claim  that  it  removes  the  taste  for  alcoholic  liquors  and  the 
user  is  in  a  condition  of  stupor  while  under  its  influence  instead  of  a  boisterous 
mood,  as  when  under  the  influence  of  alcohol.  This  is  no  reason  why  In 
dians  should  impair  their  health  by  indulgence. 

The  late  Reverend  Doctor  Roe: 

A  number  of  cases  have  come  to  my  knowledge  in  which  sudden  death, 
apparently  from  heart  failure  or  hemorrhage,  has  overtaken  individuals  while 
either  eating  or  drinking  peyote.  Generally,  however,  the  effect  is  slow,  result 
ing  in  increasing  lassitude  and  inactivity,  with  weakening  will,  disincliuaton  to 
exertion,  and  loss  of  power  of  resistance  when  attacked  by  disease.  We  are 
also  convinced  that  the  offspring  of  confirmed  users  of  peyote  show  marked 
nervous  and  brain  disturbances,  resulting  often  in  early  death,  while  the 
custom  of  administering  the  drug  to  young  children  must  be  deleterious.  It 
is  thought  that  the  excessive  mortality  among  the  young  men  of  certain  tribes, 
as  the  Oklahoma  Arapahoes,  is  due  to  the  prevalence  of  this  habit  among  them. 
I  am  inclined  to  think  that  a  moderate  and  occasional  use  of  the  drug  may 
produce  no  evil  effects  and  may  be  beneficial  in  some  cases,  if  only  because 
of  its  purgative  action.  Like  liquor,  it  may  often  be  used  with  impunity, 
but  tends  strongly  to  excess  and  physical  harm. 

Industrially,  the  practice  is  without  question  injurious.  The  physical  de 
terioration  will,  of  course,  in  the  end.  show  itself  in  decreased  industrial 
efficiency.  The  all-night  character  of  their  worship  unfits  the  peyote  eaters 
for  active  service  the  following  day.  while  the  influence  of  the  drug  results 
in  unsteady  nerves  and  relaxed  brain.  The  undoubted  fact  that  some  are 
industrious  may  often  be  offset  by  the  statement  that  these,  like  some  hard 
drinkers,  do  not  succumb  because  of  exceptionally  vigorous  physiques  or, 
perhaps,  use  the  plant  only  in  moderation.  It  should  be  further  remembered 
that  as  the  cult  confessedly  attracts  the  young,  educated,  and  progressive  it 
should  show  an  exceptionally  high  degree  of  industrial  efficiency. 

It  is  certain  that  any  practice  which  excites  the  imagination  and  relaxes 
the  will,  as  the  use  of  peyote  does,  must  result  in  immorality,  and  the  facts 
bear  out  this  reasoning.  I  have  been  told  repeatedly  by  those  who  have  given 
up  the  practice  that  the  so-called  "  mescal  feasts  "  were  often  the  scenes  of 
unbridled  libertinism.  In-  some  tribes,  the  Winnebagos,  for  example,  the 
cult  teaches  that  peyote  and  liquor  are  incompatible,  and  thus  some  restraint 
is  exercised  over  drunkenness,  but  unfortunately,  in  most  cases,  the  effect  doe^s 
not  last.  Certain  undoubted  instances  of  moral  reform  in  such  tribes  I  would 
attribute  to  the  influence  of  the  Bible  and  Christian  teaching  intermingled  with 
their  worship  rather  than  to  the  drug. 

If  Christianity,  the  accepted  religion  of  the  most  civilized  races  of  the  earth, 
has  any  superiority,  and  we  contend  that  it  has  much,  over  the  pagan  or 


16  PEYOTE. 

hybrid  forms  of  religion  practiced  by  aboriginal  peoples,  then  anything  that 
prevents  the  acceptance  of  the  better  and  promotes  the  retention  of  the  worst 
is  a  detriment  to  those  affected.  This  is  true  of  the  mescal  worship.  By  this 
intermixture  of  a  drug  habit  with  a  pretense  of  Christian  teaching,  the  young 
men  of  many  tribes  are  being  led  into  an  absurd  cult  incompatible  with  Chris 
tianity,  and  the  work  of  the  missionaries  of  all  churches  is  seriously  inter 
fered  with.  If  this  undoubted  disadvantage  to  the  Indian  resulted  from  a 
religious  creed  with  its  attendant  worship  alone,  we  could  well  afford  to  await 
the  change  that  follows  more  light,  but  as  it  springs  from  an  imported  and 
vicious  drug  habit  we  believe  that  it  is  well  within  the  power  and  the  obliga 
tion  of  the  Indian  Office  to  effect  its  suppression. 

Professor  Hrdlicka  (curator.  Division  of  Physical  Anthropology, 
United  States  National  Museum)  : 

While  the  effects  of  peyote  are  not  so  violent  or  quite  so  harmful  as  those  of 
alcohol,  they  are  nevertheless,  deleterious,  and  the  use  of  the  drug  should  be 
discouraged,  and.  if  possible,  prohibited.  The  effects  of  the  drug  manifest 
themselves  very  largely  in  nervous  stimulation,  and,  in  cases  where  larger 
doses  are  taken,  in  a  sort  of  intoxication.  These  conditions,  if  repeated  for 
a  length  of  time,  are  bound  not  only  to  cause  a  permanent  harm  to  the  in 
dividual  addicted  to  the  mescal,  but  they  also  become  a  source  of  other  ab 
normal  conditions.  The  habitual  use  of  peyote  must  be  classed  with  the 
habitual  use  of  drugs  such  as  morphine  or  cocaine. 

IS  PEYOTE  AN  INTOXICANT? 

In  their  definition  of  certain  terms  the  medical  and  legal  pro 
fessions  are  at  variance.  As  in  their  concept  of  what  constitutes 
insanity,  they  differ  as  to  what  is  an  intoxicant.  In  defining  intoxi 
cation,  Borland's  American  Medical  Dictionary  calls  it  poisoning; 
the  state  of  being  poisoned.  Therefore,  an  intoxicant  is  that  which 
poisons.  Webster's  International  Dictionary  defines  an  intoxicant 
as  that  u-hich  intoxicates;  an  intoxicating  agent.  The  word  intoxi 
cate  is  defined  as  to  drug  or  poison:  to  inebriate;  to  excite,  or  to 
stupefy  by  drink,  or  ly  a  narcotic  substance,  This  is  the  definition 
accepted  by  the  medical  profession.  The  definition  accepted  by  the 
legal  profession  is  more  restricted.  Black,  on  "  Intoxicating  liquors," 
section  423,  says:  "It  is  held  that  the  word  intoxicated  as  used  in 
the  statutes  is  to  be  taken  in  its  ordinary  signification,  and  it  means 
intoxicated  by  alcoholic  liquors."  The*  American  Encyclopedia  of 
Law,  second  Edition,  says:  "The  term  intoxicated  usually  signifies 
the  condition  produced  by  drinking  intoxicating  spirituous  liquors 
and  is  equivalent  to  drunk. 

It  is  illegal  to  introduce  intoxicants  into  an  Indian  country,  or 
to  sell  or  give  them  to  Indians,  but  under  the  restricted  definition  of 
the  law,  indictments  charging  violation  of  the  law.  when  the  intoxi 
cating  agent  has  been  peyote,  have  not  been  sustained  in  the  courts, 
and  since  the  drug  is  not  named  in  the  Harrison  Antinarcotic  Act 
it  is  held  not  to  come  within  its  provisions. 


PEYOTE.  17 

The  situation  produced  by  not  including  it  among  the  intoxicants 
because  it  is  not  an  alcoholic  intoxicant  and  by  excluding  it  from  the 
list  of  narcotics  because  it  is  not  called  a  narcotic  in  any  law  is  one  of 
the  strongest  indications  for  special  legislation  for  the  regulation  of 
the  sale  and  use  of  the  drug.  If  it  intoxicates  by  poisoning,  it  should 
be  defined  in  law  as  an  intoxicant.  If  it  is  a  narcotic  habit-forming 
drug,  dangerous  to  the  health  and  welfare  of  the  people,  it  should 
be  made  the  subject  of  regulatory  laws  as  are  other  such  drugs.  If 
it  is  neither  an  intoxicant  nor  a  narcotic  habit-forming  drug  danger 
ous  to  the  health  of  the  people  of  the  United  States,  then  all  con 
troversy  should  be  removed  by  careful  study  of  the  subject  by  an 
impartial  commission  of  Government-appointed  scientists. 

The  present  scientific  view  is  that  peyote  is  a  narcotic  and  an  in 
toxicant  ;  that  it  is  a  habit-forming  drug  possessing  limited,  if  any. 
therapeutic  properties;  that  it  is  dangerous  and  should  be  made  the 
subject  of  restrictive  legislation. 

The  Indians,  whose  ideas  of  intoxicants  are  limited  to  the  effects 
produced  by  alcohol,  are  sincere 'in  their  belief  that  peyote  is  not  an 
intoxicant.  It  does  not  completely  stupefy  by  its  poisonous  action 
on  the  protoplasm,  but  exerts  its  influence  more  particularly  on  the 
nervous  system,  leaving,  unless  the  dose  has  been  overwhelmingly 
large,  the  higher  consciousness  to  look  down,  as  it  were,  in  helpless 
amazement  on  the  warfare  between  the  cells  of  nerve  centers  and  the 
poisonous  drug  circulation  in  the  blood— a  tragedy  of  mind  destruc 
tion  and  soul  dishonor. 

Alcoholic  drinks  may  be  so  modified  by  processes  of  manufacture 
or  by  the  admixture  of  other  substances  as  to  form  agreeable  bever 
ages,  and.  when  thus  prepared,  they  may  be  taken  for  their  pleasant 
taste  and  not  for  their  .stimulant  effect,  but  this  is  not  true  of  peyote. 
The  taste  of  this  substance  is  so  unpleasant  as  to  preclude  anyone 
from  developing  a  liking  for  it.  It  is  taken  solely  for  its  effects— 
for  the  purpose  of  producing  intoxication.  Even  when  it  is  admin 
istered  for  the  ostensible  purpose  of  relieving  pain,  the  dose  to  be 
effective  must  be  sufficient  to  obtund  the  sensibilities  of  the  nerves  by 
its  narcotic  effect— that  is.  by  its  intoxicant  properties.  In  fact,  the 
value  of  peyote  as  a  remedial  agent  has  never  been  proved.  It  was 
formerly  employed  to  some  extent  in  the  treatment  of  the  various 
forms  of  neurasthenia  or  weakness  of  the  nerves,  hysteria,  asthma, 
rheumatism,  and  neuralgia;  but  at  present  it  is  not  used  in  scientific 
medicine,  nor  is  it  manufactured  as  a  pharmaceutical  product.  ^Some 
years  ago  two  firms  of  manufacturing  chemists— one  in  the  United 
States  and  one  in  Germany— marketed  a  medical  preparation  of 
peyote.  but  they  no  longer  do  so.  because  the  physicians  would  not 
prescribe  so  dangerous  a  habit-forming  drug  of  so  uncertain  thera 
peutic  value. 


18  PEYOTE. 

PEYOTE  AS  AN  INTOXICANT  BEFORE  THE  COURTS. 

Peyote  as  used  by  the  Indians  of  the  United  States  bears  no  re 
semblance  to  their  conception  of  an  intoxicant.  The  product  is  the 
dried  flowering  top  of  a  spineless  cactus,  and  even  when  it  is  served 
in  the  form  of  a  decoction  the  liquid  is  unfermented.  They,  as  well 
as  the  majority  of  white  people,  associate  the  word  intoxicant  with 
some  form  of  alcoholic  drink. 

From  the  verdicts  in  the  few7  introduction  cases  which  have  come 
before  the  courts  it  is  evident  that  the  trend  of  legal  opinion  is  that 
peyote  is  not  an  intoxicant  within  the  meaning  of  the  law. 

Safford,  in  writing  of  peyote  under  the  title  "An  Aztec  Xarcotic," 
quotes  the  testimony  given  at  a  trial  in  which  it  was  sought  by  invok 
ing  the  aid  of  the  law  to  establish  a  precedent  which  would  serve  as 
a  basis  for  legal  procedure  to  keep  the  drug  from  being  carried  or 
shipped  into  Indian  country.  Inasmuch  as  the  proceedings  quoted 
are  a  matter  of  record,  they  follow  without  further  credit  and  with 
out  further  indication  of  their  source : 

On  March  15.  1914,  a  Menominee  Indian  boy  was  arraigned  before  a  Federal 
court  charged  with  the  introduction  of  an  intoxicant,  peyote,  into  an  Indian  res 
ervation  and  with  giving  an  intoxicant,  peyote,  to  Indians  in  violation  of  the  law. 

The  drug  had  been  brought  from  Aguilares.  Tex.,  by  parcel  post  and  by  the 
defendant  taken  on  the  Menominee  Reservation  in  a  suitcase  and  carried  to  the 
house  of  an  Indian  who  was  to  give  a  peyote  l'  function  "  of  a  religious  nature. 
At  the  house  of  worship  those  who  were  to  part  cipate  in  the  function  first  made 
a  line  about  the  house  to  keep  out  the  evil  spirits,  and  then  prayed  to  God,  ask 
ing  him  to  make  all  of  them  good  and  keep  them  from  evil.  It  was  testified 
that  the  peyote  was  distributed  to  each  a  certain  portion,  and  when  it  was  eaten 
it  caused  the  partakers  thereof  to  see  the  ev.l  things  they  had  done  and  showed 
them  the  good  things  they  ought  to  do.  One  witness  stated  that  after  he  had 
eaten  four  buttons  he  could  see  with  his  eyes  closed  pictures  of  various  kinds. 
First,  he  saw  God  with  a  bleeding  wound  in  his  side.  Tlrs  vision  would  vanish 
when  he  opened  his  eyes  and  reappear  upon  closing  them,  but  it  finally  gave 
away  to  an  hallucination  of  a  different  character,  for  he  saw  next  the  devil  with 
horns,  tail,  and  all,  and  he  was  black.  Then  he  saw  the  bad  things  which  he 
had  done;  he  saw  bottles  of  whisky  that  he  had  drunk,  a  watermelon  which 
he  had  stolen,  and  so  many  other  things  that  it  would  take  all  day  to  tell  of 
them. 

Then  he  saw  a  cross  with  all  kinds  of  colors  about  it,  white,  red.  given,  and 
blue.  He  said  that  he  was  not  made  helpless,  and  could  have  walked,  had  he 
wished,  but  he  preferred  to  sit  still  and  look  at  the  pictures. 

Another  witness  testified  that  he  ate  peyote  so  that  his  soul  might  go  up  to 
God.  He  also  testified  that  peyote  had  helped  the  Indians  by  making  them  lead 
better  lives  and  forsake  alcoholic  drinks. 

Upon  this  evidence  the  defendant,  who  admitted  the  facts  of  having  intro 
duced  peyote  into  Indian  country  and  delivering  it  to  Indians,  was  acquitted  on 
the  ground  that  the  meeting  was  of  a  religious  character  and  that  peyote  was 
used  to  celebrate  religious  rites. 


PEYOTE.  19 

HOW  PEYOTE  IS  TAKEN  AND  ITS  IMMEDIATE  EFFECTS. 

Peyote  is  taken  in  several  ways — by  chewing  and  swallowing  the 
dried  buttons,  in  a  decoction  or  "  tea,"  by  moistening  the  buttons 
through  holding  them  in  the  mouth  for  several  minutes  and  then 
swallowing  them  to  be  digested  by  the  stomach  and  by  grinding 
the  substance  to  a  powder  and  putting  it  into  capsules  before  swal 
lowing  it.  The  most  usual  method,  perhaps,  is  that  of  chewing  and 
swallowing  the  buttons,  as  this  gives  the  quickest  action  consistent 
with  the  avoidance  of  waste  of  any  of  the  drug.  It  is  said  that  some 
Indians  make  a  tea  from  the  buttons  and  after  drinking  it,  eat  the 
dregs  so  as  to  be  sure  that  they  have  not  Avasted  anything.  It  is  not 
uncommon  for  those  who  are  not  able  to  chew  up  the  dry  hard 
peyote  buttons  to  have  this  done  by  some  friend  who  has  good  teeth, 
who,  after  chewing  the  substance  until  it  is  in  condition  to  be  swal 
lowed,  spits  it  out  in  his  hand  and  returns  it  to  its  owner  to  do  the 
rest. 

The  effects  of  peyote  are  probably  more  uniform  than  those  of  most 
intoxicants,  but  still  there  is  considerable  variation  in  them,  accord 
ing  to  the  character,  disposition,  susceptibility,  mental  characteristics, 
and  physical  health  of  the  individual  users.  Other  factors  in 
fluencing  variation  in  s}7mptoms  are  size  of  the  dose  and  the  number 
of  previous  doses  taken  preliminary  to  the  debauch. 

The  first  appreciable  sought- for  effect  is  said  to  be  a  peculiar 
excitement  of  the  brain,  expressing  itself  in  a  feeling  of  contentment, 
well-being,  and  a  friendly  attitude  toward  the  world  in  general. 
This  feeling  is  soon  followed  or  supplemented  by  a  delightful  de 
rangement  of  the  centers  of  sight  in  the  brain,  which  causes,  more 
particularly  when  the  eyes  are  closed,  a  constant  flow  of  scenes  of 
infinite  beauty,  grandeur,  and  a  variety  of  both  color  and  form  which 
pass  in  panoramic  review,  the  number  being  so  great  that  none  are 
repeated.  The  sense  of  time  is  greatly  perverted — moments  are  as 
minutes,  minutes  are  as  hours,  and  hours  are  as  days. 

If  the  dose  has  been  excessive,  or  if  the  brain  is  embarrassed  by 
other  poisons  circulating  in  the  blood,  the  scene  may  shift  to  one  of 
unpleasant  aspect,  and  hideous  monsters,  grotesque  and  grinning 
faces,  and  beings  of  distorted  shape  appear.  Indians  sometimes  in 
terpret  these  disagreeable  visual  hallucinations  as  denizens  from 
the  abode  of  evil  spirits  sent  as  a  warning  to  them  to  forsake  their 
evil  ways  or  as  a  token  that  they  should  abandon  the  use  of  peyote. 
They  interpret  the  pleasing  visions  as  a  reflection  of  the  beauties  of 
paradise. 

There  is  no  particular  variation  in  the  effect  of  the  drug  on  Indians 
and  white  people.  If  the  peyote  is  good  for  the  Indians,  it  is  good 


20  PEYOTE. 

for  the  white  people:  if  it  is  bad  for  the  Indians,  it  is  bad  for  the 
whites.  It  is  a  drug  with  definite  physiological  action,  which,  under 
similar  conditions,  is  no  respecter  of  persons  or  races. 

PHYSIOLOGICAL  ACTION. 

The  following  adaptations  were  made  from  the  notes  of  the  in 
vestigators  to  whom  they  are  credited: 
Dr.  Walter  E.  Dixon  : 

The  physiological  action  of  peyote  may  be  divided  into  a  preliminary  stage 
and  a  stage  of  intoxication.  In  the  preliminary  stage  there  is  excitement,  a 
feeling  of  exhilaration,  and  a  diminished  power  to  perceive  the  sensation  of 
movement,  performances  involving  effort  being  hardly  noticed.  During  this 
stage  the  face  is  flushed  and  the  pupils  are  dilated  ;  there  is  a  tendency  to 
talkativeness  which  may  become  wandering  later,  when  the  patient  begins  10 
feel  "  light-headed."  This  stage  is  not  of  long  duration,  and  is  superseded  by 
the  second,  or  stage  of  intoxication. 

The  stage  of  intoxication  is  characterized  by  an  inclination  to  lie  down, 
although  there  is  never  a  tendency  to  sleep.  The  pupils  are  now  widely  dilated 
and  react  but  sluggishly  to  light.  On  attempting  to  walk,  the  gait  resembles 
that  in  alcoholic  intoxication,  and  in  all  movements  requiring  precision  the 
incoordination  is  evident.  The  body  is  generally  in  n  tremulous  condition,  the 
tremors  showing  well  when  the  attention  is  fixed  on  anything  held  in  the 
hand.  Reflexes  are  much  increased,  including  the  skin  reflexes,  although 
there  is  a  considerable  blunting  of  the  senses  of  pain  and  touch.  Twitching  of 
the  muscles  occurs  in  various  parts  of  the  body,  especially  noticeable  in  the 
face,  and  there  is  a  curious  feeling  as  if  the  face,  lips,  and  tongue  were  much 
swollen. 

As  in  the  intoxication  of  cannabis  indica.  time  is  overestimated,  possibly  as 
a  result  of  the  rapid  flow  of  ideas  and  the  inability  to  fix  the  attention.  Per 
ception  of  space  is  also  modified,  on  one  occasion  giving  the  impression  that 
the  ground  sloped  away  in  all  directions. 

Perception  may  also  be  delayed ;  for  example,  one  under  the  influence  of 
peyote  may  look  at  a  person  he  knows  well  and  not  be  able  to  recognize  him 
for  what  appears  to  the  experimenter  a  considerable  time.  This  delay  may  be 
more  apparent  than  real,  owing  to  the  increased  time  relation.  As  might  be 
expected,  the  attention  can  not  be  fixed  during  this  stage,  the  least  stimulus 
being  sufficient  to  alter  the  train  of  thought.  It  was  found  impossible  to  fix 
the  attention  on  a  book,  and  a  subsequent  examination  of  notes  attempted  dur 
ing  the  stage  of  intoxication  showed  incoordination  both  as  regards  language 
and  writing. 

On  two  occasions  when  deeply  under  the  influence  of  the  drug  there  was  an 
indescribable  feeling  of  dual  existence ;  thus,  after  sitting  with  closed  eyes  sub 
jectively  examining  the  color  visions,  on  suddenly  opening  them  for  a  brief 
space  one  seems  to  be  a  different  self,  as  on  waking  from  a  dream  we  pass  into 
a  different  world  from  that  in  which  we  have  been.  This  may  be,  to  some  ex 
tent,  comparable  to  the  rhythmical  rise  and  fall  of  the  "  psychic  waves  "  in  In 
dian  hemp  intoxication. 

But  by  far  the  most  remarkable  of  these  subjective  phenomena  are  the  sen 
sory  hallucinations,  especially  visual.  These  arise  gradually,  and  are  at  first 
seen  only  with  closed  eyes ;  in  the  early  stage  they  show  an  undulatory  motion 
in  zigzagged  lines,  but  they  rapidly  become  more  marked,  until  on  closing  the 


PEYOTE.  2 1 

eyes  a  regular  kaleidoscopic  play  of  colors  can  be  seen  with  either  eye,  pre 
cisely  the  same,  which  indicates  that  condition  must  be  central. 

These  colors  may  assume  all  kinds  of  fantastic  shapes;  they  are  never  still, 
but  constantly  in  motion,  sometimes  in  a  circular  or  to-and-fro  manner,  but  more 
generally  there  is  a  kind  of  pulsation  somewhat  similar  to  that  in  the  cine 
matograph.  It  is  interesting  to  note  that  pressure  on  the  eyeball  is  sufficient 
to  alter  the  colors  and  change  the  type  of  vision.  In  no  case  were  visions  of 
external  objects  seen,  but  always  the  same  dashes  of  color,  of  a  brilliance  and 
blending  which  in  the  intoxicated  condition  seemed  to  be  of  indescribable 
beauty,  and  even  as  a  memory  still  possess  a  charm.  The  coloring  of  all  ex 
ternal  objects  is  intensified.  The  light-blue  shadows  seen  with  the  eyes  open 
in  this  stage  are  probably  due  to  the  dilatation  of  the  pupils. 

The  eft'ect  of  the  sound  of  the  piano  was  most  curious  and  delightful,  the  whole 
air  being  filled  with  music,  each  note  of  which  seemed  to  arrange  around  itself 
a  medley  of  other  notes  which  appeared  to  be  surrounded  by  a  halo  of  color 
pulsating  to  the  music. 

Doctors  Prentiss  and  Morgan : 

The  production  of  visions  is  the  most  interesting  of  the  physiological  effects 
of  peyote.  The  visions  ranged  from  ill-defined  flashes  of  color  to  most  beautiful 
figures,  forms,  landscapes,  dances — in  fact,  there  seemed  to  be  absolutely  no 
limit  to  the  variety  of  visions  which  the  drug  could  produce.  They  can  in  but 
few  cases  be  seen  with  the  eyes  open,  but  upon  closing  them  an  everchanging 
panorama  appears.  The  predominating  features  of  the  visions  are  the  color 
effects,  although  the  figures,  forms,  and  other  presentations  are  in  themselves 
sources  of  pleasure  and  admiration.  Drumming  or  otherwise  marking  regular 
time  enhances  the  beauty  and  variety  of  the  objects  seen.  In  some  cases  the 
visions  are  under  the  control  of  the  will,  while  less  frequently  they  are  ap 
parently  subject  to  the  suggestion  of  others.  The  amount  of  pleasure  derived 
from  the  drug  seems  to  vary  inversely  with  the  amount  of  muscular  depression 
present.  The  effect  of  the  drug  in  the  production  of  visions  is  in  all  probability 
due  to.  the  stimulation  of  the  centers  of  vision  in  the  brain.  The  persistent 
headache  and  the  feeling. of  exhaustion  in  the  occipital  region,  which  are  some 
times  "experienced  as  after  effects,  are  of  interest  in  this  connection. 

In  some  cases  no  effect  of  the  drug  is  apparent  upon  the  reason  or  will  of  the 
user.  In  others  there  may  be  slowness  of  thought,  loss  of  the  power  of  expres 
sion,  or  even  marked  delusions.  Compared  with  alcoholic  intoxicants,  the  effect 
on  the  mind  is  slight. 

Dilatation  of  the  pupils  is  a  constant  effect,  and  persists  from  12  to  24  hours 
after  the  last  dose  of  the  drug.  The  dilatation  is  accompanied  by  a  slight  loss  of 
the  power  of  accommodation  and  a  consequent  loss  of  vision. 

More  or  less  depression  of  the  muscular  system  is  produced  and  may  be 
noticed  as  the  first  effect  of  the  drug.  Such  depression  ranges  from  a  feeling 
of  la xy  contentment  to  marked  muscular  depression,  according  to  the  suscepti 
bility  of  the  individual.  Whether  the  sedative  action  is  caused  by  depression  of 
the  nerve  centers,  peripheral  nerves,  or  their  nerve  endings,  or  of  the  muscular 
fibers  themselves,  is  not  positively  known ;  however,  the  weight  of  opinion  is 
inclined  to  the  belief  that  it  is  due  to  depression  of  the  nervous  system  and  not 
of  the  muscular  fibers  themselves.  As  the  effects  of  the  drug  subside  a  partial 
loss  of  feeling  in  the  skin  may  appear  as  a  symptom  in  some  cases. 

The  heart  action  is  at  first  rendered  more  slow  and  somewhat  weaker  in 
quality.  This  is  followed  by  a  rise  to  the  normal  in  quality  and  rapidity,  which 
continues  during  the  period  of  greatest  activity  of  the  dn«r. 


22  PEYOTE. 

The  respiration  may  partake  of  the  general  muscular  depression,  but  as  a  rule 
is  not  much  affected  by  moderate  doses  of  the  drug. 

Upon  the  stomach  the  drug  produces  an  effect  which  varies  from  a  feeling  of 
uneasiness  and  fullness  at  intervals  to  nausea  and  vomiting. 

Inability  to  sleep  for  at  least  12  hours  after  the  effects  of  the  drug  begin  to 
wear  off  is  a  constant  symptom. 

Loss  of  the  sense  of  time  is  also  a  constant  symptom. 

The  effect  upon  the  bowels,  skin,  temperature,  and  the  amount  of  secretion  of 
the  various  glands  of  the  body  are  not  constant. 

The  physiological  action  of  peyote  upon  man  can  not  be  said  to  be  identical 
with  that  of  any  other  known  drug.  Its  effects  resemble  those  of  certain  drugs 
in  some  of  the  symptoms  produced,  but  differ  widely  from  them  in  others. 
Cannabis  indica  produces  visions  and  dilates  the  pupils,  exerting  slight  effect 
upon  the  circulation.  In  these  particulars,  its  action  is  similar  to  that  of  peyote. 
But  cannabis  indica  is  a  hypnotic,  and  the  delirium  and  hallucinations  are  in 
most  cases  followed  by  sleep,  while  peyote,  on  the  other  hand,  invariably  tends 
to  produce  wakefulness.  The  Indians  do  not  sleep  for  24  hours  after  the  com 
mencement  of  their  ceremonies.  In  this  tendency  to  produce  wakefulness 
peyote  resembles  cocaine. 

The  visions  produced  by  cannabis  indica  are  generally  of  a  gay  character, 
producing  much  merriment,  accompanied  by  a  great  inclination  to  muscular 
movement.  The  visions  of  peyote  provoke  wonder  and  admiration,  but  no 
merriment.  There  is  a  disinclination  toward  muscular  effort. 

Cushney's  Materia  Medica : 

Peyote  is  similar  to  opium  and  cannabis  indica,  but  more  frequent  color 
visions  are  produced.  The  drug  does  not  cause  the  same  amount  of  merriment 
that  cannabis  indica  does,  nor  the  sleep  that  morphine  does.  It  produces  im 
perfect  coordination  of  movement,  retards  perception,  and  causes  errors  in  the 
estimation  of  time,  due  to  its  action  on  the  cerebrum.  Large  doses  cause  de 
pression  of  the  respiratory  and  circulatory  centers. 

Merck's  Index,  190T : 

Mescal  buttons  cause  intoxication  accompanied  by  nrost  wonderful  visions, 
beautiful  and  varied  kaleidoscopic  changes,  sensations  of  increased  physical 
ability. 

Conclusions  based  upon  laboratory  tests  of  the  physiological  action 
of  peyote  made  by  Prof.  Roswell  P.  Angler,  of  Yale  University,  were 
summarized  as  follows: 

1.  Interferes  with  accuracy  of  movement. 

2.  Impairs  the  steadiness  and  precision  of  movement. 

3.  Retards  visual  apprehension. 

4.  Reduces  accuracy  and  concentration  of  attention. 

5.  Lessens  the  memory  of  ideas. 

All  experiments  taken  together  seem  to  indicate,  at  least,  that  under  the 
influence  of  peyote  control  over  the  motor  coordination  of  muscles  suffers; 
that  power  of  attention  is  not  so  great;  and  that  such  effort  produces  more 
fatigue  than  when  exerted  in  the  normal  state.  Furthermore,  it  appears  that 
the  range  of  apprehension  and  memory  also  suffers.  Even  with  small  doses  of 
the  drug  the  general  efficiency  of  the  body  is  lessened.  Under  the  influence  of 
peyote  if  work  is  attempted  it  is  performed  with  a  sort  of  superficial  haste. 


PEYOTE.  23 

THERAPEUTIC  USES. 

United  States  Dispensatory,  nineteenth  edition : 

The  value  of  mescal  buttons  as  a  remedial  agent  is  doubtful ;  it  has  been 
employed  to  a  slight  extent  in  various  forms  of  neurasthenia  and  hysteria, 
and  is  asserted  by  S.  F.  Landry  to  be  especially  valuable  in  cases  of  asthma. 
It  has  also  been  alleged  to  be  useful  in  neuralgic  and  rheumatic  affections. 
It  may  prove  of  value  as  a  nerve  stimulant  in  cases  of  hypochondriasis  and 
similar  states  where  there  is  a  tendency  to  failure  of  the  heart.  Prentiss  and 
Morgan  give  the  dose  of  the  crude  drug  as  from  7  to  15  grains ;  of  the  fluid 
extract,  from  10  to  15  minims;  of  the  10  per  cent  tincture,  from  1  to  2  tea- 
spoonfuls. 

The  therapeutic  effects  of  peyote,  so  far  as  is  known,  would 
seem  to  satisf}^  Borland's  definition  of  a  narco-stimulant;  that  is  to 
say,  the  drug  possesses  both  narcotic  and  stimulant  properties.  The 
action  of  the  isolated  alkaloids  is  different  from  that  of  the  crude 
drug.  Borland  defines  a  narcotic  as  "Any  drug  that  produces  sleep 
or  stupor,  and  at  the  same  time  relieves  pain." 

One  of  the  alkaloids  is  said  to  produce  sleep  when  administered 
h3Tpodermically.  The  crude  drug,  like  cocaine,  causes  wakefulness, 
but  acts  as  a  narcotic  in  other  respects. 

The  Indian  use  of  peyote  for  therapeutic  purposes  has  been  too 
empirical  to  be  of  value.  It  is  used  for  every  indication  because 
of  its  narcotic  properties.  Two  of  the  largest  drug-manufacturing 
houses  of  the  world,  the  only  firms  that  ever  introduced  peyote  into 
scientific  medicine,  abandoned  it  because  physicians  would  not  pre 
scribe  it. 

If  it  has  any  real  therapeutic  value,  it  has  not  yet  been  determined, 
nor  have  the  dosage  and  preparation  been  standardized ;  hence  it  is 
safer  to  let  it  alone. 

PEYOTE  AND  THE  FOOD  AND  DRUGS  ACT. 

Section  6  of  the  food  and  drugs  act  of  June  30,  1906.  defines  the 
term  drug  and  food  in  a  proviso,  stating  : 

That  the  term  "  drug  "  as  used  in  this  act  shall  include  all  medicines  and 
preparations  recognized  in  the  United  States  Pharmacopoeia  or  National  Formu 
lary  for  internal  and  external  use,  and  any  substance  or  mixture  of  substances 
intended  to  be  used  for  the  care,  mitigation,  or  prevention  of  diseases  of  either 
man  or  other  animals.  The  term  "  food,"  as  used  herein,  shall  include  all 
articles  used  for  food  or  drink,  by  man  or  other  animals,  whether  simple,  mixed, 
or  compound. 

Peyote  does  not  appear  to  come  within  the  foregoing  definition 
of  medicine  or  food  as  it  has  been  interpreted  by  the  courts.  It  is 
not  recognized  by  the  United  States  Pharmacopoeia,  nor  is  it  men 
tioned  in  the  National  Formulary.  Its  use  as  an  "  Indian  medicine  " 


24  PEYOTE. 

is  not  recognized  scientifically.  In  fact,  it  has  at  present  no  place  or 
recognition  in  materia  medica.  It  is  not  used  as  a  food  to  nourish 
the  body,  nor  can  it  properly  be  called  a  beverage,  for  it  is  not  used 
to  allay  thirst.  Its  principal  use  in  the  form  of  a  liquid  is  as  "  holy 
water"  or  as  a  convenient  way  of  forcing  babies  to  take  it  or  of 
administering  it  to  those  who  can  not  chew  the  "  buttons." 

Customhouse  detention  of  peyote  has  been  brought  about  by  invok 
ing  a  law  to  be  found  in  section  11  of  the  act  of  June  30,  1906  (34 
Stat,  768-772)  reading,  in  part,  as  follows: 

The  Secretary  of  the  Treasury  shall  deli  VIM-  to  the  Secretary  of  Agriculture, 
upon  bis  request  from  time  to  time,  samples  of  foods  and  drugs  which  are  being 
imported  into  the  United  States  or  offered  for  import,  giving  notice  thereof  to 
the  owner  or  consignee,  who  may  appear  before  the  Secretary  of  Agriculture, 
and  have  the  right  to  introduce  testimony,  and  if  it  appear  from  the  examination 
of  such  samples  that  any  article  of  food  or  drug  offered  to  be  imported  into  the 
United  States  is  adulterated  *  *  *  or  is  otherwise  dangerous  to  the  health 
of  the  people  of  the  United  States  *  *  *  the  said  article  shall  be  refused 
admission,  and  the  Secretary  of  the  Treasury  shall  refuse  delivery  to  the  con 
signee  and  shall  cause  the  destruction  of  any  goods  refused  delivery  which  shall 
not  be  exported  by  the  consignee  within  three  months  from  the  date  of  notice 
of  such  refusal  under  such  regulations  as  the  Secretary  of  the  Treasury  may 
prescribe. 

Under  the  authority  of  the  foregoing  section  of  the  food  and 
drugs  act,  the  bureau  has  been  able  to  detain  shipments  coming  into 
the  country  from  Mexico  through  customhouses,  as  may  be  seen  from 
the  regulation  which  appeared  in  "  Service  and  Regulatory  An 
nouncement  Xo.  13. '"'  Department  of  Agriculture.  Bureau  of  Chem 
istry,  issued  May  3,  1915 : 

The  branch  laboratories  of  the  bureau  have  been  instructed  to  detain  all  ship 
ments  of  "peyote'' — synonyms  "  hikulu."  "mescal  buttons" — offered  for  im 
port  at  the  various  ports,  on  the  ground -that  it  is  an  article  dangerous  to  the 
liealth  of  the  people  of  the  United  States.  "  Peyote  "  is  a  product  derived  from 
the  plants  of  the  genus  "Anhalonium,  order  Cactacae." 

The  effect  of  the  regulation  has  been  to  make  it  somewhat  less 
convenient  to  get  peyote.  but  it  has  not  lessened  the  supply. 

Under  the  act  of  January  30,  1897  (29  Stat,  506),  it  is  made  an 
offense  "  to  furnish  any  article  whatsoever  under  any  name,  label, 
or  brand  which  produces  intoxication  to  any  Indian  ward  of  the 
Government." 

A  test  case  was  brought  before  a  United  States  court  under  the 
foregoing  statute,  but  it  was  held  that  in  law  the  definition  of  an 
intoxicant  is  restricted  to  alcoholic  preparations. 

If  any  obstacle  is  to  be  interposed  against  the  peyote  habit  other 
than  that  of  education,  there  is  need  of  a  special  law  or  an  amend 
ment  to  the  Harrison  Narcotic  Act. 


PEYOTE.  25 

OPPOSITION  TO  LEGISLATION. 

The  peyote  societies  are  not  stoically  indifferent  toward  the  agi 
tation  for  legislation  against  peyote.  There  appear  to  be  organiza 
tions  in  opposition  to  such  a  program,  and  they  are  very  active  in 
their  propaganda  for  their  constitutional  rights.  They  have  their 
paid  attorneys  to  advise  them  and  to  represent  them.  They  have 
their  influential  sponsors  and  they  have  their  friends  in  Congress — 
all  sincere  in  their  opinions  that  peyote  is  making  the  Indians  bet 
ter,  making  them  sober  and  industrious.  They  are  sincerely  inter 
ested  in  the  welfare  of  the  Indians,  and  the  task  is  to  demonstrate 
to  them  and  to  the  Indians  that  they  are  in  error:  that  the  use  of 
pevote  instead  of  being  a  constitutional  privilege  and  a  blessing  is 
an  error  of  constitutional  interpretation  and  an  insidious  curse. 

The  peyote  users  among  the  Indians  rest  their  case  on  two  points — 
their  constitutional  rights  and  the  benefits  of  peyote.  Indians  who 
are  opposed  to  peyote  argue  that  the  peyote  users  do  not  constitute 
a  church  organization,  but  a  collection  of  peyote  eaters  banded 
together  in  a  sort  of  social  fellowship  to  enjoy  the  privilege  of 
meeting  in  friendly  gatherings  to  experience  the  seductive  pleasures 
of  the  weird  form  of  intoxication  produced  by  consuming  their 
religious  fetish — peyote:  also  that  the  use  of  the  drug  is  harmful  to 
the  addicts  and  militates  against  their  moral,  physical,  and  mental 
welfare  through  its  insidious  power  to  do  evil. 

TESTIMONY  OF  DR.  HARVEY  W.  WILEY. 

Dr.  Harvey  W.  Wiley  in  testifying  before  the  Senate  Committee 
on  Indian  Affairs  said,  in  brief: 

*  *  *  This  is  the  point  which  I  desire  to  bring  before  this  committee — that 
a  substance  which  is  not  a  food,  and  which  does  exert  a  powerful  influence  upon 
the  nerve  centers — because  that  is  where  it  must  be  exerted  finally — should  not 
be  used  except  for  medicinal  purposes,  and  then  only  under  the  advice  and  super 
vision  of  a  competent  physician. 

Now.  that  is  the  attitude  which  we  hold  toward  drugs  similar  to  peyote  and 
all  intoxicating  drugs.  We  also  take  the  same  position  toward  the  powerful 
remedies  that  are  not  intoxicating  in  the  ordinary  sense,  although  they  may 
be  toxic  in  their  general  effect,  but  we  speak  of  intoxication  as  some  derange 
ment  of  the  mental  structure,  and  followed  by  a  lack  of  coordination  in  the 
physical  structure. 

We  have  laws  carefully  controlling  the  use  of  such  drugs  in  this  country, 
laws  passed  by  Congress  and  many  by  the  States.  The  Harrison  narcotic  law, 
so  called,  is  an  attempt — and  a  fairly  successful  one — to  limit  the  use  of  opium 
and  cocaine,  on  account  of  the  fact  that  they  have  the  properties,  which  I  have 
just  mentioned,  of  intoxication. 

The  people  of  the  United  States  have  ratified  an  amendment  to  the  Constitu 
tion  controlling  alcohol,  which  is  an  intoxicant,  and  thus  the  principle  that 
these  dangerous  drugs  should  be  controlled  has  been  written  into  the  Constitu- 


26  PEYOTE. 

tion  and  the  opposition  to  legislation  of  this  kind  on  the  grounds  that  it  is 
unconstitutional,  that  it  interferes  with  personal  liberty,  or  that  it  is  a  matter 
that  should  be  left  to  the  individual  judgment  is  not  tenable,  because,  had  we 
followed  that  principle,  we  would  have  had  none  of  these  acts  of  restrictive 
legislation. 

Now,  I  think  that  the  people  who  are  exposed  to  dangers  of  this  kind  are 
usually  very  much  opposed  to  being  protected.  That  is  true  particularly  with 
regard  to  alcohol,  opium,  cocaine,  and  other  habit-forming  drugs,  and  I  call  this 
peyote  and  believe  it  to  be  a  habit-forming  drug  for  this  reason ;  if  we  should 
listen  to  the  arguments  of  those  who  want  to  use  the  drug  or  have  used  it 
or  any  kind  of  a  drug  which  is  regulated  by  legislation  we  would  not  have  any 
legislation  of  any  kind. 

It  seems  to  me  those  who  should  control,  so  far  as  argument  is  concerned, 
are  persons  who  are  not  subject  to  the  drug  themselves,  who  have  no  desire  to 
use  it  for  themselves,  but  who  have  the  welfare  of  the  people  who  use  this 
drug  at  heart.  *  *  * 

I  would  not  regard  as  a  religious  cult  any  exhibition  or  exercise  produced  by 
a  toxic  drug.  I  do  not  believe  in  that  kind  of  culture.  *  *  *  So  far  as 
building  up  a  peyote  church  is  concerned,  if  that  is  established  we  will  have 
an  alcohol  church  and  a  cocaine  church  and  a  tobacco  church,  and  any  other 
person  who  wants  to  use  a  drug  and  escape  legal  penalties  for  doing  so  can  call 
it  a  religious  rite.  It  is  a  drug  addiction,  pure  and  simple. 

THE  PEYOTE  QUESTIONNAIRE. 

Under  date  of  March  28,  1919.  the  Indian  Office  issued  a  question 
naire  of  21  interrogations  pertaining  to  peyote,  designated  as  cir 
cular  1522,  addressed  to  the  superintendents  with  instructions  to 
render  the  questionnaires  themselves  and  to  secure  accomplishments 
from  their  physicians,  field  matrons,  and  farmers.  They  were  also 
directed  to  submit  the  questionnaires  to  the  missionaries  working 
among  their  Indians  and  to  transmit  the  returns  as  independent 
reports.  Copies  of  the  circular  were  sent  to  inspecting  officials  and 
special  liquor  suppression  officers. 

The  interrogatories  and  requests  for  information  incorporated  in 
the  said  circular  were  as  follows : 

Ed-L  &  O. 
Circular  No.  1522. 
Peyote. 

DEPARTMENT  OF  THE  INTERIOR, 

OFFICE  OF  INDIAN  AFFAIRS, 

Washington,  March  28,  1919. 
To  superintendents,  inspecting  officials,  physicians,  and  others  interested: 

The  office  desires  to  obtain  reliable  and  authoritative  information  to  date  as 
to  the  growth  and  the  present  status  of  the  use  of  peyote  by  Indians  and  the 
effects  from  such  use. 

Superintendents  in  charge  of  reservations  are  instructed  to  submit  reports 
from  their  physicians,  field  matrons,  and  farmers  on  the  subject  in  addition 
to  their  own  report.  The  missionaries  should  also  be  requested  to  submit  a 


PEYOTE.  27 

report  through  you  answering  the  questions  herein  presents.  Please  submit 
your  report  by  May  1,  1919,  if  possible,  covering  the  following  phases  of  the 
subject : 

1.  Give  the  name  of  agency  and  Indians  covered  by  your  report. 

2.  What  opportunity  have  you  had  to  observe  the  use  and  effects  of  peyote  or 
mescal,  where  peyote  is  so  called? 

3.  Do  these  Indians  use  peyote?    If  so.  what  percentage  of  them  use  it? 

4.  Do  the  Indians  eat  the  button;  or  drink  the  liquid  after  steeping;  or  how 
is  it  prepared  for  use? 

5.  What  is  the  moral,  mental,  and  physical  effect  produced  by  the  use  of 
peyote?     Does  it  cause  intoxication? 

6.  Are  the  Indians  who  use  peyote  any  more  or  any  less  industrious,  thrifty, 
advanced,  or  civilized,  than  those  who 'do  not  use  it? 

7.  Upon  what  do  you  base  your  answers  to  questions  5  and  6? 

8.  Is  the  peyote  button  used  in  connection  with  any  religious  services?     If 
so,  how.  and  under  what  rules  as  to  fixed  times,  quantity,  membership,  and 
other  conditions? 

9.  Is  its  use  in  religious  service  a  long  established  custom  of  the  tribe  or  a 
recent  innovation?     Give  data,  if  practicable. 

10.  If  the  practice  is  recent,  by  whom  was  it  introduced?  . 

11.  In  the  case  of  those  who  profess  to  use  peyote  as  a  sacrament  at  religious 
services,  do  they  use  it  also  at  other  times? 

12.  Is  it  used  by  Indians  at  meetings  other  than  those  of  a  religious  char 
acter?     If  so,  give  information  relative  thereto. 

33.  At  religious  services  or  other  meetings  is  peyote  given  to  all  who  attend 
regardless  of  whether  they  are  adults  or  children? 

14.  How  long  do  the  peyote  services  or  meetings  last,  and  what  are  their 
effect  on  those  who  attend?     State  facts  clearly. 

15.  From   your  information  and  observation  do  you  believe  the  plea  that 
peyote  is  used  as  a  religious  sacrament  is  genuine,  or  that  it  is  advanced  as  a 
cloak  to  prevent  legislative  enactment  against  the  use  of  the  drug?    Upon  what 
do  you  base  your  answer? 

16.  Is  peyote  used  or  administered  as  a  medicine?     If  so,  by  whom,  in  what 
cases,  and  how  is  it  administered? 

17.  Give  specific  instances  of  cases  within  your  knowledge  where  the  use 
or  administration  of  peyote  has  been  harmful  or  degrading. 

38.  Through  what  agency  is  the  peyote  button  distributed  among  the  Indians 
of  the  jurisdiction  upon  which  you  are  reporting? 

19.  Where  does  the  supply  come  from?    If  shipped  in,  how,  to  whom,  and 
from  whom? 

20.  Has  the  question  whether  it  is  in  fact  an  intoxicant  been  presented  to 
and  decided  by  the  courts  or  has  it  been  passed  upon  by  other  authority? 

21.  Give  any  other  information  you  may  be  able  to  furnish  in  connection 
with  its  use. 

SUMMARY    OF   THE    ANSWERS    TO   THE    QUESTIONNAIRE. 

A  summary  of  the  302  answers  is  submitted.  Some  of  the  infor 
mation  is  condensed  into  tabular  statements,  some  arranged  as 
synopses,  and  some  as  running  comment. 

In  assembling  the  answers  to  that  part  of  question  3  requiring  a 
statement  of  the  percentage  of  peyote  users  it  was  observed  that  in 


28  PEYOTE. 

many  cases  the  percentage  of  the  families  associated  with  the  cult 
was  stated  regardless  of  the  number  of  individuals  who  were  ac 
tually  addicted  to  the  habit,  as  for  instance,  if  in  a  band  of  Indians 
numbering  600  there  could  be  counted  30  peyote  families,  aggre 
gating  150  individuals,  the  report  might'  show  150  users,  or  a  per 
centage  of  25;  or  it  might  take  cognizance  of  the  adults  only— 
that  is,  of  those  more  than  18  years  of  age,  say,  husbands  and  wives, 
60;  children  of  18  years  or  more.  30;  total.  90,  or  a  percentage  of  15. 
The  truth  in  such  a  case  might  be  that  only  men  were  partakers, 
and  perhaps  they  might  not  be  habitual  users;  hence  it  became  neces 
sary  to  adopt  some  scheme  of  classification  to  which  all  reports 
could  be  reduced,  whereupon  it  was  decided  to  employ  the  group 
heading  "  Number  affected  by  peyote/'  Under  this  classification  are 
enumerated  all  peyote  users  and  the  families  in  which  they  belong. 
The  actual  number  of  users,  of  course,  is  considerably  less  than  the 
number  affected  by  peyote,  since  the  young  children  and  frequently 
other  members  of  the  family  are  not  addicted.  In  adopting  this 
classification  the  secret  users  who  are  not  reported,  if  there  be  any, 
are  more  than  accounted  for  in  the  enumeration  of  nonusing  children 
under  this  caption. 

SUMMARY  OF  THE  RETURNS. 

Question  1.  Answers  embodied  in  Table  1. 

Question  2.  Nearly  all  the  answers  displayed  considerable  knowledge  of  the 
subject  on  the  part  of  those  making  them,  and  in  cases  where  opinions  were 
expressed  or  examples  cited  personal  knowledge  derived  from  intimate  observa 
tion  and  inquiry  was  claimed  by  the  testifiers. 

Question  3.   (See  Tables  1  and  2.) 

Question  4.  An  analysis  of  the  answers  to  this  question  shows  that  though 
eating  the  button  is  probably  the  most  usual  way  of  partaking  of  peyote,  except 
as  a  medicine,  because  it  is  the  most  convenient  way,  the  method  of  the  use  of 
the  drug  has  not  been  made  the  subject  of  ritual  law  or  priestly  regulation. 
For  administration  as  a  remedial  agent,  to  be  used  internally,  or  as  a  local 
application  either  for  its  medicinal  effect  or  exorcismal  functions,  and  also  when 
it  is  employed  in  celebrating  baptism  or  for  other  sacramental  purposes,  or  as  a 
holy  water,  an  infusion  or  decoction  of  the  peyote  buttons  is  used. 

The  buttons  are  sometimes  ground  into  powder,  which  is  put  Into  capsules  by 
those  who  prefer  this  method  of  administration.  Others  soak  the  buttons  in 
water  before  swallowing  them.  This  precaution  eliminates  to  a  great  extent  the 
necessity  for  mastication,  facilitates  the  process  of  swallowing,  and  lessens  the 
time  during  which  the  bitter,  disagreeable-tasting  substance  must  remain  in  the 
mouth  before  it  is  "  ready  for  action." 

The  young  people  and  others  who  have  good  teeth  will  accommodatingly  chew 
the  buttons  into  a  pulpy  mass  for  those  whose  teeth  are  bad.  When  the  bolus 
is  "  all  right  now,"  it  is  transferred  by  the  chewer  into  the  palm  of  the  donee, 
who  with  his  fingers  compresses  it  into  a  spherical' mass,  "slaps  it  into  his 
mouth,"  rubs  the  back  of  his  neck  with  his  left  hand  and  his  stomach  with  his 
right  and  "  lets  her  go."  knowing  that  he  will  get  prompt  action  with  no  further 


PEYOTE.  29 

expenditure  of  effort.  (The  quoted  words  are  not  from  the  files  but  from  an 
oral  description  of  peyote  methods  by  a  young  English-speaking  Indian.) 

Without  questioning  the  altruistic  character  of  the  motive  which  actuates  the 
"  vicarious  "  chewers,  it  is  conceivable  that  they,  particularly  those  who  make 
a  practice  of  chewing  for  others,  are  not  oblivious  to  the  fact  that  a  certain 
amount  of  unavoidable  toll  is  taken  by  their  systems  from  the  "  peyote  juice  " 
mixed  with  the  saliva,  which  is  invariably  swallowed  as  a  matter  of  economy. 

When  an  infusion  or  decoction  of  the  drug  is  used,  known  as  "  peyote  tea," 
even  the  dregs  or  grounds  are  eaten,  and  also  when  the  buttons  are  soaked  to 
make  them  softer,  the  liquid  is  utilized— true  examples  of  conservation. 

Question  5.  With  the  exception  of  three  agencies,  all  the  reports  assert  that 
the  moral,  mental,  and  physical  effects  of  peyote  are  detrimental.  The  following 
descriptive  terms  and  expressions  are  taken  from  the  various  answers  to  this 
question,  and  arranged  in  the  order  in  which  they  appeared  in  the  interrogatory : 

Moral  effects. — Debasing,  deadens  moral  sensibilities,  tends  to  immorality, 
tends  to  licentiousness;  makes  its  victims  liars;  morally  degenerating;  weakens 
resistance  power ;  has  same  effect  as  liquor  on  morals ;  like  opium ;  like  any 
other  drug  habit;  eliminates  moral  power;  it  is  a  surprise  to  me  and  appears 
to  be  to  everyone  else  *  *  *  for  if  anything  could  be  said  in  favor  of  the 
continuation  of  its  use  it  would  be  that  it  probably  will  exterminate  those  who 
use  it ;  weakens  the  moral  fiber ;  lowers  moral  efficiency ;  degrading  in  every 
particular;  degrading  and  degenerating;  leads  to  sexual  perversion;  makes 
degenerates  out  of  the  Indians;  it  ruins  those  who  use  it  mentally,  morally, 
and  physically ;  continued  use  of  peyote  causes  mental,  moral,  and  physical 
degeneration ;  weakens  in  every  respect ;  increases  immorality  without  a  doubt. 

Mental  effects. — Increases  the  imagination ;  makes  its  victims  noncommittal ; 
produces  visions ;  makes  the  mind  stupid ;  deadens  the  intellect ;  stupefies ; 
produces  lethargy ;  makes  the  mind  stupid,  especially  in  children ;  weakens  will 
power  and  opinions;  causes  the  users  to  lose  interest;  stimulates  the  mind  at 
first,  followed  by  reaction;  acts  like  opium  or  morphine;  degrading  in  every 
particular ;  its  use  produces  stupor ;  weakens  them  mentally ;  those  who  have 
the  habit  are  indolent,  shiftless,  and  have  no  fixed  purpose ;  the  continued  use 
of  peyote  makes  the  users  dead-headed  and  stupid. 

Physical  effects— Produces  yellow  color  and  drawn  look;  impairs  nerve 
stability;  produces  physical  degeneration  and  weakness;  makes  its  users  in 
different;  produces  certain  diseases  and  leads  to  early  decay  and  death  Tmay 
lead  to  insanity;  makes  the  body  sluggish;  stupefies  children;  weakens  the 
body;  weakens  the  offspring. 

Does  peyote  cause  intoxication?— With  the  exception  of  three  or  four  an 
swers,  the  opinion  is  expressed  that  peyote  causes  intoxication.  Some  call  the 
period  of  reaction  the  condition  of  intoxication,  and  others  refer  to  the  period 
of  stimulation,  the  stage  of  visions,  as  a  state  of  intoxication,  while  others 
regard  the  first  effects,  which  produce  a  feeling  of  general  contentment  and  well 
being  as  a  manifestation  of  intoxication. 

Only  one  answer— and  that  was  made  by  a  missionary— stated  that  there  is 
no  effect.  From  a  legal  point  of  view  the  term  intoxicant  should  be  re 
stricted  to  that  which  produces  a  form  of  intoxication  coming  within  the 
definition  the  condition  produced  by  the  excessive  use  of  alcoholic  stimulants. 
There  is  'certainly  some  change  in  the  feelings  and  mental  condition  produced 
bv  peyote  which  is  agreeable  to  the  users,  and  while  experiencing  this  changed 
feeling  due  to  peyote  those  in  whom  the  effects  are  manifested  are  not  in 
their  normal  condition,  and  if  the  dose  has  been  sufficiently  large  they  are 
affected  mentally,  morally,  and  physically,  according  to  an  analysis  of  the 


30  PEYOTE. 

vast  preponderance  of  the  testimony  submitted  in  the  answers  under  considera 
tion. 

Question  6.  With  one  notable  exception  the  superintendents  who  answer 
the  question  are  practically  of  one  opinion  as  to  whether  Indians  who  use 
peyote  are  more  industrious,  more  thrifty,  and  more  advanced  than  those  who 
do  not  use  it,  all  agreeing  that  the  use  of  the  drug,  either  directly  or  indirectly, 
is  detrimental  to  industry,  thrift,  and  advancement.  Two  farmers  and  one 
missionary  submit  what  might  be  termed  a  minority  report  sustaining  the 
view  expressed  by  the  superintendent  who  alleges  that  peyote  users  are  more 
industrious,  more  thrifty,  and  more  advanced  than  Indians  who  do  not  use  it. 
Among  Indians  who  are  moderate  or  occasional  users  of  peyote  the  indirect 
effects  are  more  noticeable  than  the  direct  effects,  for  the  members  of  the  peyote 
bands  must  pay  the  expense  of  holding  the  peyote  feasts  and  they  must  neglect 
their  work  to  attend.  A  Utah  Indian  alleges  that  he  had  to  sell  two  head  of 
cattle  to  pay  his  pro  rata  share  of  one  of  the  feasts  given  by  his  band,  but 
undoubtedly  the  average  feast  would  be  less  expensive;  however,  there  is 
abundant  evidence  to  show  that  many  an  Indian  who  desires  peyote  prominence 
will  spend  from  $50  to  $500  annually  to  establish  and  maintain  his  rigiht 
to  the  title  of  good  fellow.  Peyote  comradeship  leads  to  a  free  expression  of 
the  natural  trait  of  liberality,  so  characteristic  of  the  Indian  race,  but  un 
fortunately  it  is  also  conducive  to  poverty  and  debt,  with  their  diststrous 
consequences  to  industrial  progress  and  thrift  possibilities. 

Question  7.  The  answers  made  to  interrogatories  5  and  6,  involving  the 
expression  of  individual  opinions  upoji  the  effects  of  peyote  upon  the  moral, 
mental,  and  physical  nature  of  the  Indians  who  use  the  drug,  upon  whether 
peyote  was  an  intoxicant,  and  whether  the  peyote  habit  affected  the  condition 
of  the  Indians  with  regard  to  their  industrial  attainments,  habits  of  thrift, 
and  status  of  civilization,  elaim  to  be  based  upon  observation,  inquiry,  and 
investigation.  For  the  most  part  the  variation  in  answers  may  be  explained 
by  the  different  ways  in  which  the  questions  were  interpreted,  some  evidently 
thinking  that  they  referred  to  near  effects — that  is  to  the  immediate  action 
of  the  drug — and  others  understanding  that  they  meant  the  remote  or  terminal 
effects  or  results  of  the  use  of  peyote. 

Question  8.  All  Indians  other  than  those  of  the  pueblo  of  Taos,  N.  Mex., 
and  ^he  Northern  Cheyennes  of  Tongue  River  Reservation,  Mont.,  claim  that 
their  use  of  peyote  is  primarily  a  religious  rite,  and  that  peyote  is  both  a 
sacrament  and  a  medicine.  The  Tongue  River  Indians  and  the  Taos  Indians 
hold  that  peyote  is  an  Indian  medicine  and  that  it  was  created  for  the  Indians 
and  not  for  white  people.  They  frankly  admit  that  they  take  it  because  they 
believe  in  it  as  a  medicine  and  because  they  like  the  effect  produced  by  it. 

On  a  few  reservations  the  use  of  peyote  is  apparently  restricted  to  its  re 
ligious  and  so-called  medicinal  use,  but  among  the  majority  of  Indians  who  par 
take  of  the  drug  the  prime  consideration  is  the  sensation  produced  by  it.  The 
habitual  user  will  take  a  dose  anywhere  and  whenever  he  can  get  it.  Some 
carry  it  in  their  pockets  like  tobacco,  while  others  do  not  care  to  indulge  alone 
but  prefer  to  meet  and  enjoy  it  together.  This  class  may  take  advantage  of  any 
meeting  to  show  their  sociability.  As  a  rule  peyote  meetings  are  held  at  regu 
lar  set  intervals  or  at  the  call  of  the  leaders.  The  scheduled  meetings  are  some 
times  held  weekly,  Saturday  night  being  the  time  of  selection,  semimonthly  or 
monthly  according  to  the  season  of  the  year,  the  supply  of  peyote,  the  condi 
tion  of  the  weather,  the  roads  and  the  financial  condition  of  the  leaders  and 
the  members.'  The  cost  of  small  peyote  meetings  are  functions  given  by  the 
leaders  and  others  and  are  subscription  affairs.  Nearly  all  the  scheduled  or  ad- 


PEYOTE.  31 

vertised  meetings  have  a  religious  aspect.  The  accidental  meetings  are  simply 
the  improvement  of  opportunities  for  sociability,  such  meetings  frequently 
being  the  accidental  coming  together  of  a  few  kindred  souls. 

The  membership  of  a  peyote  lodge  is  usually  made  up  of  adult  males,  that  is 
to  say,  of  males  that  are  more  than  IS  years  of  age.  but  this  does  not  mean  that 
the  women  and  children  are  excluded.  The  former  are  an  essential  part  of 
the  meeting.  They  prepare  the  feast  and  also  partake  of  the  drug,  but  gener 
ally  they  take  no  part  in  the  public  function— in  "  putting  on  the  ritual/'  Chil 
dren  may  also  attend,  but  they  do  not  take  peyote  as  a  rule  except  when  it  is 
given  to  them  as  medicine.  The  taste  is  not  inviting,  nor  would  a  small  child 
like  the  sensation  of  peyote  intoxication,  for  children  and  the  lower  animals 
want  to  feel  natural  and  are  uncomfortable  when  they  have  an  "artificial 
feeling." 

Indians  are  generous,  and  their  tables,  even  at  a  peyote  feast,  are  set  in  the 
open  communion  plan  and  in  the  spirit  of  "  whosoever  will,  let  him  come  and 
partake  freely,"  regardless  of  station,  age.  sex,  or  previous  condition. 

Question  9.  The  answers  as  to  when  the  peyote  habit  was  taken  up  by  the 
Indians  of  the  United  States  range  from  2  to  55  years  ago,  the  greater  number 
having  reference  to  the  Kiowas,  who  have  used  the  drug  for  a  long  time.  The 
use  of  peyote  among  Indians  other  than  the  Kiowas  and  Comauches  is  of  com 
paratively  recent  date,  being  introduced  perhaps  in  the  eighties,  but  did  not 
begin  to  spread  until  1895  or  later. 

Question  10.  The  extension  of  the  peyote  habit  may  be  traced  directly  through 
"  apostolic  succession  "  to  Aztec  origin.  The  knowledge  of  the  drug  has  been 
carried  from  one  tribe  to  another  by  missionary  activity  actuated  more  by  a 
yearning  for  leadership  and  power  than  by  faith  in  its  religious  significance. 
While  a  few  Indians  have  been  able  to  maintain  themselves  by  preaching  the 
gospel  of  peyote.  it  would  seem  t^hat  there  has  been  no  organized  effort  to  com 
mercialize  this  form  of  weakness,  nor  has  the  drug  been  subjected  to  the 
machinations  of  profiteering  merchants  or  the  schemes  of  monopolists. 

The  habit  may  be  carried  from  one  reservation  to  another  by  visiting  Indians 
whose  principal  object  is  to  pass  along  something  new,  something  of  interest, 
something  that  will  add  ambassadorial  features  to  an  ordinary  intertribal  visit. 
An  Indian  makes  a  good  missionary.  He  likes  to  spread  glad  tidings  and  he 
likes  the  acclaim  of  the  multitude.  There  is  not  a  single  case  on  record  where 
a  white  man  has  been  instrumental  in  introducing  the  peyote  habit  among  In 
dians.  The  propagandist  or  pioneer  is  invariably  an  Indian,  a  peyote  mission 
ary  who  seeks  to  spread  his  gospel  and  to  live  by  his  gospel,  or  he  is  just  an 
ordinary  fellow  who  is  seeking  cheap  notoriety  and  some  sort  of  recognition. 

Question  11.  As  heretofore  expressed  in  different  language,  some  Indians  use 
peyote  only  at  religious  meetings;  others  are  true  addicts  and  use  it  daily. 
There  are  still  others  who  are  habitual  partakers  in  public,  regardless  of  the 
character  of  the  meeting,  but  do  not  use  it  privately.  These  form  the  class  who 
are  attracted  to  it  because  it  promotes  sociability. 

A  careful  study  of  the  answers  to  question  11  reveals  the  fact  that  the  peyote 
habit  in  a  tribe  is  modified  to  a  great  extent  by  environment  and  opportunity. 
The  more  peyote  they  have  the  more  meetings  they  have,  and  the  more  meetings 
they  have  the  more  peyote  they  use.  The  only  advantage  a  religious  meeting 
has  over  any  other  kind  of  Indian  meeting  in  promoting  the  use  of  peyote  lies 
in  the  stimulus  of  preparation  and  purpose. 

Question  12.  Peyote  is  used  at  meetings  other  than  those  of  a  religious  char 
acter,  and  it  is  used  in  private,  but  such  use  is  incidental,  as  a  rule,  to  the 
habit.  According  to  the  analysis  of  the  answers  to  question  12,  practically  all 
distinctive  peyote  meetings  are  characterized  by  a  religious  feature. 


32  PEYOTE. 

Question  13.  The  information  given  in  answer  to  this  question  shows  that 
there  is  considerable  variation  in  various  local  customs.  On  account  of  its 
disagreeable  taste,  peyote  is  not  sought  after  by  children ;  however,  boys  and 
girls  of  8  to  10  years  of  age  have  been  known  to  become  addicts.  A  peyote 
meeting  is  generally  conducted  on  the  open-communion  plan,  but,  as  a  rule, 
children  do  not  partake. 

Question  14.  This  question,  as  indicated  by  the  variation  in  answers,  has 
been  considered  under  different  interpretations.  Some  have  included  under  the 
term  "  services  "  the  preparation  and  the  feast  portion  of  the  meetings,  while 
others  have  omitted  these.  Furthermore,  some  have  answered  that  part  of  the 
question  relating  to  the  effects  of  the  meetings  under  the  assumption  that  infor 
mation  was  sought  concerning  the  immediate  action  of  the  narcotic,  while  others 
have  discussed  the  remote  or  accumulative  effects. 

The  average  scheduled  peyote  meeting,  lasting  one  night  and  nearly  one  day, 
will  dissipate  for  the  participants  not  less  than  three  days  of  time  and  for  the 
leaders  or  managers  at  least  four  days.  The  former  spends  one  day  in  making 
preparations,  going,  and  returning,  and  one  night  and  one  day  at  the  feast,  and 
one  day  in  recovering  from  the  immediate  effects.  The  latter,  in  addition  to  the 
three  days  which  are  required  of  all,  must  spend  at  least  another  day  in  notify 
ing  the  guests  (invitations  are  not  necessary)  and  in  providing  the  feast  and 
attending  to  the  preliminaries. 

The  peyote  portion  of  the  meeting  is  usually  from  sunset  to  sunrise.  The  day 
after  a  peyote  night  is  spent  in  lounging  around  and  feasting.  By  selecting: 
Saturday  as  the  initial  day  of  the  meeting,  they  have  all  day  Sunday  for  re 
habilitation  ;  Monday  also  is  frequently  necessary. 

In  some  sections  peyote  meetings  are  protracted  to  two  or  four  weeks, 'de 
pending  upon  the  supply  of  peyote.  Where  this  practice  prevails,  only  twro  or 
three  meetings  are  held  a  year. 

T|]P  i]fip  nf  ppyntP  is  n  timf»-killing  habit,  and  in^thisjgspecf  there  rnn  he  nc± 
question  as  to  its  militating  against  the  industrial  progress  of  those  who  have 
thejiaiut. 

Question  15.  The  majority  of  those  who  have  answered  this  question  believe 
that  with  the  leaders  the  use  of  peyote  as  a  sacrament  is  for  the  purpose  of  pre 
venting  the  enactment  of  legislation  against  the  narcotic.  Yet  even  the  mission 
aries,  for  the  most  part,  concede  that  some  of  the  full  bloods,  particularly  the 
old  people,  are  sincere  in  their  profession  of  faith — a  faith  that  is  based  on  the 
traditions  of  the  past  and  now  frequently  propounded  to  them  by  young  men 
who  have  been  educated  in  government  "schools.  The  old  fellows  believe  sin 
cerely  in  the  cult,  for  is  not  peyote  worship  near  enough  like  the  white  man's 
religion  to  have  the  approval  of  the  "Great  Spirit"?  They  are  told  that  the 
differences  are  only  adaptations  because  peyote  religion  is  for  the  Indian  only, 
and  the  white  man's  religion  is  for  white  people. 

Question  16.  The  consensus  of  answers  shows  that  peyote  is  administered  as  a 
remedial  agent  by  the  medicine  man,  by  the  priests  of  the  cult/by  old  women, 
and  by  habitual  users.  It  is  usually  administered  as  a  tea,  both  internally 
and  locally,  and  is  used  as  a  remedy  for  every  kind  of  disease.  It  may  be  used 
as  a  medicine  in  any  other  form,  or  it  is  regarded  as  equally  efficacious  as  an 
exorcissory  agent. 

Question  17.  Probably  half  of  those  answering  this  question  make  citations 
of  specific  cases  showing  the  harmful  or  degrading  effects  of  the  habitual  use 
of  the  drug. 

Question  18.  Peyote  is  invariably  distributed  among  Indians  by  other  Indians. 
One  Indian  may  supply  two  or  three  reservations,  or  one  congregation  may 


PEYOTE. 


33 


get  their  supply  from  another  congregation.  The  Indians  apparently  do  not 
seek  to  make  a  profit  on  the  sales  of  peyote  among  themselves. 

Question  19.  Peyote  is  obtained  from  Texas  and  Mexico.  A  curio  merchant 
in  Ponca  City,  Okla.,  does  a  somewhat  extensive  local  and  mail  order  business 
in  this  commodity,  his  supplies  coming  from  Mexico  and  Texas. 

Peyote  finds  its  way  to  the  reservations  by  parcel  post,  by  express,  occasionally 
by  freight,  in  the  suitcases  of  "  pilgrims,"  and  in  the  pockets  of  visitors. 

Question  20.  There  are  mentioned  two  cases  in  both  of  which  it  was  decided 
that  the  effects  of  peyote  do  not  conform  to  the  legal  definition  of  intoxication. 
The  Utah  State  Board  of  Pharmacy  holds  that  it  is  an  intoxicant,  and  under 
the  laws  of  both  Utah  and  Colorado  its  use  is  prohibited.  Oklahoma  formerly 
had  a  law  against  it,  but  it  was  omitted  in  the  codification  of  the  State  Statutes 
and  thus  repealed.  Since  this  law  ceased  to  exist  in  Oklahoma,  the  State  has 
granted  a  charter  to  the  peyote  cultists  under  the  name  of  "  The  Native 
American  Church." 

A  decision  was  rendered  by  a  justice  of  the  peace  in  a  small  Nebraska  town, 
holding  that  peyote  is  an  intoxicant. 

Question  21.  Several  writers  have  taken  advantage  of  the  liberty  granted  by 
this  question  to  protest  against  the  waste  of  time  entailed  in  attendance  upon 
peyote  functions.  The  meetings  are  often  held  during  the  dry  seasons  and 
seriously  interfere  with  the  harvesting  of  the  crops,  even  when  such  meetings 
are  .restricted  to  Saturday  nights  and  Sundays,  for  there  must  be  taken  into 
consideration  the  preparation  day  before  and  "  the  day  after,"  when  very  little 
work  is  done.  Protests  are  also  made  against  the  serious  drain  made  upon  the 
financial  resources  of  the  Indians  who  give  the  functions.  In  their  efforts  to 
keep  up  appearances  and  be  good  fellows  they  are  impoverishing  themselves; 
and  finally  the  superintendents  plead  for  the  lower  animals,  for  the  horses  that 
are  overdriven,  and  for  the  poor  creatures  which  are  neglected  from  the  day 
of  notification  to  the  day  of  restoration  to  a  normal  condition. 

TABLE  1. — Showing  the  number  of  Indians  affected  by  peyote  at  each  agency  in 
the  United  States,  and  the  relation  of  such  numbers,  expressed  in  terms  of     j 
percentage,  to  the  population  of  each  jurisdiction  concerned. 

[NOTE.— For  definition  of  the  phrase  "affected  by  peyote''  as  used  in  Table  1,  see  Summary  of  the  Answers 
to  the  Questionnaire,  last  paragraph.] 


Agency. 

Indian  tribes. 

Total 
popula 
tion. 

Number 
affected 
by 
peyote. 

Percent 
of 
popula 
tion. 

Paiute  Shoshoni  Moache                          .      

1  58S 

0 

0 

Blackfeet 

Blackfeet  Blood,  Piegan  

2,773 

0 

0 

Mission    '            '                      

229 

0 

0 

Mojave-Apache                                               .  •  . 

435 

0 

o 

\rapaho  Cheyenne       

780 

702 

90.0 

2,343 

0 

0 

1,252 

939 

75.0 

Cheyenne  River 

Blackfeet/  Miniconjou,  Sans  Arc,  Two  Kettle 

2,845 

0 

0 

Sioiix. 
Coeur  d'Alene,  Kalispel,  Kootenai  

829 

0 

0 

Cocopa  Kewai  Mojave,  Chemehuevi  

-  1.184 

0 

0 

ColviUe          

Coeur  d'Alene,  Colville,   Kalispel,  Okanogan, 

2,566 

0 

0 

Lake   Methow,    Nespelera,    Pend   d'Oreille, 
Sannoil.  Spokane  (Confederated  Colville). 
Mountain  Crow,  River  Crow  

1.703 

34 

2.0 

Lower  Yanktonai  Sioux  

970 

0 

0 

Cushman    

Chehalis,   Muckleshoot,    Nisquali,   Skokomish 

2,143 

0 

0 

\ 

(Clallam),  Squaxon  Island. 

299 

0 

0 

£alioen  

Paiute                                         

420 

Five  Civilized  Tribes..  . 
Flandreau... 

Choctaw,  Chickasaw,  Cherokee,  Creek,  Seminole. 
Flandreau  Sioux  

101,506 
293 

40 
0 

c 

34  PEYOTE. 

TABLE  l.—Showmp  the  number  of  Indians  affected  by  peiiote,  etc. — Continued. 


Agency. 

Indian  (rites. 

Total 
popula 
tion. 

Number 
affected 

by 

peyote. 

Per  cent 
of 
popula 
tion. 

Flathead  

Bitter  Root,  Carlos,  Flathead,  Kutenai,  Lower 

2,426 

0 

0 

Kalispel,  Pend  d'Oreille  (Confederated  Flat- 
head). 

58.5 

0 

0 

Chippewa 

1,067 

0 

o 

Fort  Apache 

White  Mountain  Apache                 

2,456 

0 

0 

Fort  Belknap 

1,208 

0 

0 

1,204 

0 

o 

Fort  Bid  well 

Digger  Paiute  Pit  River                    

750 

0 

0 

Fort  Hall 

'•  Bannock  Shoshoni  Skull  Valley 

1,764 

o 

o 

Fort  Lapwai 

i  Nez  Perce                                

1,551 

0 

0 

Fort  McDermitt 

'  Paiute                                                        

349 

0 

o 

Fort  Mojave 

Fort  Peck  
Fort  Totten 

Assiniboine,  Brule,  Santee,  Teton,  Hunkpapa, 
Yanktonai  Sioux. 
Assiniboine   Cuthead,  Santee,  Sisseton,  Yank- 

2,039 

983 

0 
10 

0 
1.0 

Fort  Yuina 

ton,  Wahpeton  Sioux. 
Yurna                                                     .           

835 

0 

o 

Goshute  

;  Paiute     .  .              

423 

0 

o 

Grand  Portage 

j  Chippewa                                             

321 

0 

o 

•Grand     Rapids    (now 

1  372 

480 

35  ft 

Wisconsin  Rapids). 
Greenville 

Digger  Wa^ho  Concow  Ukit?                    

693 

o 

o 

Havasupai 

Havasupai 

171 

o 

0 

Hayward  .... 

Chippewa  

1,276 

o 

0 

Hoopa  Valley 

Hunsatung     Hupa     Klamath  River,    Miskut, 

1  485 

o 

0 

Jicarilla 

Redwood,  Saiaz,  Sarmalton,  Tishtanatan. 
Jicarilla  Apache 

621 

o 

o 

Kaibab  

Kaibab  Faiute                             

102 

o 

o 

Keshena 

Menominee 

1  1  758 

53 

3  0 

Kickapoo 

Iowa  Kickapoo  Sac  and  Fox 

637 

255 

40  0 

Kiowa  

Apache,  Comanche,  Delaware.  Kiowa,  Wichila, 

4  583 

3  437 

75  0 

Klamath    . 

and  affiliated  bands. 
Klamath   Modoc   Paiute   Pit  River   Walpape 

1  160 

o 

o 

Lac  du  Flambeau  

Yakooskin  Band  of  Snake  (Shoshoni). 
Chippewa 

744 

o 

o 

Laona  

Potawatomi 

355 

o 

o 

La  Pointe 

1  054 

o 

o 

Leech  Lake  

Cass  Lake,  Pillager    and  Lake  Winibigoshish 

1  786 

89 

5  0 

Leupp  

Bands  of  Chippewa. 
Navajo  

1  441 

o 

o 

Lower  Brule 

513 

Q 

n 

Maiki  

Mission 

634 

o 

o 

Mackinac 

i  1  097 

Mescalero  

Chippewa. 

630 

Q 

Mississippi  Choctaw  

Choctaw 

1  253 

o 

o 

Moapa  River  

Paiute  

113 

o 

o 

Moqui  
Navajo  

Hopi,  Navajo  

Navajo  .  . 

4,225 
12  080 

0 

o 

0 

Q 

NeahBay  

Hoh  Makah  Ozette  Quileute 

*682 

Q 

Q 

Nett  Lake  

Boi11  Fort  Band  of  Chippewa 

614 

Nevada  

Paiute  .    .  . 

561 

o 

o 

New  York..  . 

4  T  oao 

Omaha 

fonawanda,    Tuscarora,  'Montauk,    Poospa- 
tuck,  Shinnecock  (not  classified). 
Omaha  

1  377 

1  239 

90  0 

Oneida  (Wisconsin.)". 

Oneida  

2  610 

'     o 

o 

Osage  

Great  Osage  Little  Osage 

2  jgg 

i    rjno 

Otoe  

Otoe  and  Missouri  

'524 

262 

50.0 

Pawnee  

Mission  
Pawnee  

1,025 
716 

0 
143 

0 
20  0 

Pima  

Maricopa  Papago  Pima 

fi  2-W 

Pine  Ridge  
Pipestone     (Birch 
Cooley). 
Ponca  

Northern  Cheyenne,  Bruie  Sioux,  Oglala  Sioux. 
Mdewakanton  and  Wapaguita  Sioux  and  Sisse- 
^ton,  and  Wahpeton. 
Kaw,  Ponca  Tonkawa 

7,340 
164 

1  060 

367 
0 

fi^fi 

5.0 
0 

80  O 

Potawatomi... 

Prairie  Band  of  Potawatomi 

777 

Pueblo  Bonito  

Navajo  

2  724 

Q 

Pueblo  Agency  

Pueblo,  Navajo. 

8  896 

5  QQ 

Tied  Cliff  

Chippewa... 

527 

0 

0 

»  See  Colorado  River. 

*  £*clusive  of  606  Stockbridge  and  Munsee  citizen  Indians  who  are  nonusers. 

This  report  does  not  include  the  6,417  scattered  Indians  in  Michigan  who  also  do  not  use  pevote. 
4  Exclusive  of  360  unattached  Indians — all  nonusers. 

&  In.  a  Popuktion  of  8,896.  only  33  individuals  are  affected  bv  pevote,  all  residing  in  Taos,  one  of  the  more 
remote  of  the  19  pueblos  within  the  j  urisdiction  of  the  agency. 


PEYOTE.  35 

TABLE  1.— Showing  the  number  of  Indians  affected  by  peyote,  etc.— Continued. 


Agency. 

i     Total 
Indian  tribe?.                                 popula 
tion. 

Number 
affected 
by 
peyote. 

Per  cent 
of 
popula 
tion. 

Red  Lake  

Pembina  and  Red  Lake  Chippewa  ...                          14% 

o 

o 

Rocky  Bov 
Rosebud 

Scattered  Indians  of  California  and  Nevada  8,'  000 
Rocky  Boy's  Band  (Cree)                                                460 

0 
0 

0 
0 

Round  Valley.. 
Sac  and  Fox  (Iowa)  

Clear  Lake,  Concow.  Littie  Lake,  Nomelaki,  Pit          l'  518 
River,  Potter  Valley.  Redwood  Wailaki  Ukie  ' 
or  Yuki. 
Sac  and  Fox  (Mesquakie)  3.% 

40 

0 

107 

.7 
0 

30  0 

Sac   and    Fox    (Okla 

Iowa,  Sac  and  Fox  683 

*>95 

30  0 

homa). 
Salt  River  

Maricopa,  Mojave-Apache  Pima                                i  277 

San  Carlos  

Mojave-Apache.  San  Carlos  2  623 

o 

o 

San  Juan  

Navajo  65000 

Sells  

??Pag£-nV  s'237 

0 

0 

Seper  

Seneca 

Ajrapano,  Cheyenne                                                        747 

598 

80.0 

Shawnec  
Shivwits  

Wyandotte. 

Absentee  Shawnec.  Mexican  Kickapoo  -750 
Paiute  119 

75 
O 

2.0 
10.0 

Q 

Shoshone.  .  . 

North  \rapaho  Eastern  Band  (if  ^hoshoni                  1  696 

Siletz  

Confederated  Siletz                                                            446 

Q 

Q 

Sisseton  

Sisseton  and  Wahpeton  Sioux                                     2  280 

o 

o 

Soboba  

Mission  926 

o 

o 

Southern  I'te  

Capote  and  Moachc  Ute                                                    369 

Q 

Q 

Spokane  

Spokane  604 

o 

o 

Standing  Rock. 

Sioux                                                                                  3  455 

Q 

n 

Taholah  

Queets  River.  Quileute.  Quinaielt                                    734 

o 

o 

Tongue  River  

Northern  Cheyenne  ]  470 

515 

35  0 

Truxton  Canon  .  . 

Walapai                                                                             450 

Q 

Q 

Tulalip 

Lummi  Port  Madison  S'u^quarnish  Swinomi^h          1  353 

Q 

Q 

Tule  River. 

Tulalip. 
Mission                                                                                  443 

o 

o 

Turtle  M  ountain  

Turtle  Mountain  Chippewa  3  298 

o 

o 

Uintah  and  Ouray  
U  mat  ilia. 

Uinta.  Uncompahgre.  and  White  River  Utes.  .  .          1,  162 
Cayus'e,  Umatilla,  Wallawalla                                ',        1  229 

581 

o 

50.0 

o 

Ute  Mountain  

Capote  and  M  cache  Ute  508 

o 

0 

Walker  River  

Paiute  1           804 

o 

0 

Warm  Springs.  .  . 

Wasco.  Tenino,  Paiufe                                                     822 

o 

o 

Western  Navajo 

Hopi,  Navajo,  Paiute                                                    6  565 

o 

o 

Western  Shoshone  

Hopi,  Paiute.  Shoshoni  607 

0 

0 

WhiterEarth. 

Chippewa.                                                                      6,555 

o 

0 

Winnebago 

Winnebago                                                                        1.086 

413 

38,0 

Yakima  

Confederated  Yakima  3.  000 

0 

0 

Yankton 

Ponca  Santee  Sioux  Yankton  Sioux                           3  117 

623 

20 

Zuni 

Pueblo.                                                    .                i        1.815 

0 

0 

6  Does  not  include  393  Peoria-Miami  citizen  Indians  who  are  nonusers.    Used  only  in  the  Quapaw  tribe, 
which  numbers  337. 

7  Does  not  include  2,288  citizen  Potawatomies. 

TABLE  2. — Showing  the  number  of  Indians  affected  by  peyote  in,  each  State  in 
which  there  is  one  or  more  Indian  agencies  and,  the  relation  of  such  numbers, 
expressed  in  terms  of  percentage,  to  the  total  Indian  population  of  the  State 
concerned. 

[See  note  under  Table  1 .] 


State. 

Indian 
popula 
tion. 

Not 

affected 
bv  pe 
yote. 

Affected 
by  pe 
yote. 

Percent 
age  of 
users  to 
popula 
tion. 

44,499 

44.499 

0 

0 

California                                           

10,725 

10.725 

0 

0 

877 

877 

0 

0 

Florida                                                                      

585 

585 

0 

0 

Idaho                                                        

4,144 

4.144 

0 

0 

356 

249 

107 

30.0 

1,414 

1,035 

379 

27.0 

1,097 

1,097 

0 

0 

12,003 

11.914 

89 

.  7 

Mississippi  ...                                                

1,253 

1,253 

0 

0 

36  PEYOTE. 

TABLE  2.— Showing  the  number  of  Indians  affected  by  peyote,  etc. — Continued. 


State. 

Indian 
popula 
tion. 

Not 
affected 
by  pe 
yote. 

Affected 
by  pe 
yote. 

Percent 
age  of 
users  to 
popula 
tion. 

Montana 

12  079 

11  530 

549 

5  0 

Nebraska'  

2,463 

811 

1.652 

67.0 

Nevada*. 

10  854 

10  854 

0 

o 

New  Mexico8.  .. 

21,186 

21,153 

33 

2.0 

New  York  

5,982 

5,982 

0 

0 

North  Carolina 

2  343 

2  343 

0 

o 

North  Dakota 

8  940 

8  930 

10 

01 

Oklahoma  

116'494 

108,  239 

S  255 

7  0 

Oregon... 

11  657 

11  657 

o 

o 

South  Dakota  4 

22  S79 

21  849 

1  030 

4  5 

Utah  

1  704 

1  123 

'SSI 

34  0 

Washington.. 

11  082 

11  082 

o 

o 

Wisconsin  * 

o  69(5 

9  163 

533 

5  0 

Wyoming  

1*696 

l'o69 

127 

8  0 

Total.... 

316  008 

30°  663 

13  345 

44- 

1  Does  not  include  1,193  Santee  Sioux  living  in  Nebraska  but  enumerated  under  the  Yanlcton  Agency 

1  Includes  5,000  (estimated)  nonenrolled  California  Indians  under  the  Reno  Agency.  Nev. 
1  Used  only  in  the  pueblo  of  Taos;  estimated  population.  550  ^census  population  1910, 521);  percentage  of 
users,  6.0. 

4  Includes  1,193  Indians  living  on  the  Santee  Reservation,  Nebr.,  attached  to  the  Yankton  Agency. 
*  Does  not  include  the  Stockbridge  and  Munsee  citizen  Indians. 


